
Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/6886318.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Major_Character_Death, Underage
  Category:
      F/M
  Fandom:
      Supernatural
  Relationship:
      Dean_Winchester/Original_Female_Character(s)
  Character:
      Dean_Winchester, Original_Female_Character(s), Sam_Winchester, Castiel,
      Original_Angel_Character(s), Metatron_(Supernatural)
  Additional Tags:
      Explicit_Sexual_Content, Sexual_Tension, Eventual_Romance
  Stats:
      Published: 2016-05-17 Updated: 2017-09-20 Chapters: 12/? Words: 106344
****** Fallen (Previously Titled Broken Bonds) ******
by cassandrax08
Summary
     Right when he loses sight of his purpose in life, Dean Winchester
     runs into someone from his past. Old feelings come flooding back,
     leaving behind an unprecedented emotion in their wake; an emotion he
     had believed he'd never truly experience, let alone with with her...
     Alaine Ventura. Strong, witty, beautifully delicate, and incredibly
     intimidating to those who dared underestimate her—she was a hunter,
     and a damn good one at that. Everything about her was too perfect,
     and Dean couldn't help but feel himself slowly falling into her
     magnetizing aura just as he had at the age of sixteen when his eyes
     had come across her for the first time.
     After years of separation, the two cross paths once more, and what
     happens as a result is something entirely unexpected:
     Their worlds collide.
     WARNING: Mature content; occasional depictions of sexual situations.
     (This fanfiction is based off of season nine of Supernatural. It does
     not follow the storyline of this season. I do not in any way own the
     characters of the show.)
Notes
     [2016 © All Rights Reserved, Cassandra Cuevas]
***** Chapter 1 *****
        It was ten past one and Alaine observed how the atmosphere in the old
country Tennessee bar had thickened as the establishment became crowded with
drunken men either burying their misery of a broken life into their alcoholic
beverages or searching for whatever barely clothed women they could take home
and have their way with.  It amused her to see just how desperate men could be
when under the influence yet that was their natural state when sober. They were
disgusting, arrogant overbearing pigs that she preferred to avoid at all times,
especially when she was on the job. She had been sitting alone in the back for
over two hours, twirling a ball point pen in between her fingers as she tried
to drown out the loud blaring of the classic rock music playing from the giant
speakers by busying herself with unfinished work. For several weeks she had
searched for a new case. She scanned through newspapers and checked online for
anything out of the ordinary but had helplessly struck out. Everything seemed
to be relatively quiet, too quiet for comfort. There wasn't any sort of news of
vampires on a killing spree or demons possessing people which she found
strange. It was as if all evil beings that roamed God's green earth were in
complete hiding. Blowing out an exasperated sigh Alaine picked up her half
empty beer bottle, pressing the rim to her lips and taking a swig as a middle
aged man came up to her table with a sly smile plastered on his face.

                "What's a pretty thing such as yourself doing here all alone?
In need of some company?" he asked with a slur as he took a seat in the chair
adjacent from her. From where she sat she could smell the gut wrenching stench
of cheap beer on his breath as he leaned over the table.

She stuffed her papers back into her Manila folder and took one last gulp from
her bottle before pushing back her chair to get on her feet. "Sorry, sugar. Not
interested."

With a small smile Alaine went to walk past the table when his hand suddenly
grabbed hold of her wrist, halting her in mid step. "What do you say we go back
to my place and get to know each other a little better?"

Alaine had turned to face him with a smirk tugging at the corners of her full
lips as she placed a small hand over his forearm. "You'd like that, wouldn't
you?" She murmured to him as she leaned down making her face leveled to his.

                "Hell yes," he eagerly answered, expecting for her to give in
but her next actions came to a complete surprise to him as she had twisted his
wrist, a loud cracking noise being audible as he fell to his knees before her
in pain. "You bitch."

Bringing back her hand she balled it into a fist and jabbed him in the eye,
forcing him to curse loudly which got the attention of several patrons that
stood nearby. "Now that's no way to talk to a lady," she smiled as she
straightened herself.

Releasing the hold she had on him she watched as he struggled to get to his
feet, his hands grasping the edge of the wobbly table. "You done screwed up,
girl," he spat as he went to strike her but Alaine had swiftly brought up her
leg, kicking him directly in the center of his groin and he hunched over in
agony.

                "I said I wasn't interested," she retorted. Grabbing hold of
his shoulders she shoved him to the floor, gaining shouts and applause from men
and women as she strode past him with a smirk plastered to her lips and made
her way towards the exit.

Stepping out into the dark night a cold autumn breeze hit her, forcing her to
shudder and zip up her leather jacket as she walked on over to her onyx 2010
Sierra 3500. Unlocking the vehicle she yanked open the heavy truck door and
climbed up into her seat, quickly throwing on her seat-belt and sticking the
key into the ignition. Tossing her folder onto the passenger seat she then
switched gears and gently eased her way out of the parking lot, gravel
crunching under the large tires as she made a u-turn onto the country back
road. She headed North for about eight miles until she came upon the sleepy
mountain town called Gatlinburg which was nestled in a quiet corner of
Tennessee. When she reached the Sleepy Bear Motel she parked her truck in front
of the room that belonged to her and shut off the engine. She sank into her
seat, taking a deep breath as she briefly closed her eyes. She was exhausted
and in desperate need of a comfy bed. She ran a small hand through her thick
sable brown hair before exiting her vehicle and walking up to her room. As she
went to unlock her door she noticed from the corner of her eye a classic '67
obsidian Chevy Impala stationed right besides her truck and a sense of
familiarity came over. She couldn't quiet place where she had seen the car
before but felt that she knew it very well. After staring at it for several
seconds in attempt to remember what she thought she might have possibly
forgotten she gave up when nothing came to mind and proceeded to step into the
dark room. She searched on the wall for the light switch and flicked it on as
she went to remove her jacket and tossed it on a nearby chair. Plopping herself
down on the queen sized mattress she loosened the strings of her combat boots
and kicked them off, carelessly shoving them to the side with her foot as she
stretched herself across the length of the bed, her slender body sinking into
the cushion as she rested her head against one of them many fluffy pillows. For
about two weeks she had been staying in the same motel on account of she had
nowhere else to go being that she now had no living family left. She had been
on her own for quiet some time bouncing from state to state, carrying out her
family's wishes for her to continue being a Hunter just as she had been raised
to be. From werewolves, shifters and ghosts she has killed them all. With every
case she closed she became stronger mentally and physically. She didn't have
room for mistakes, she didn't have room for her emotions to get the best of
her. There were times where innocent people died and she wasn't able to do a
thing about it. There were times where she came across creatures - a werewolf
or a vampire who just happened to be different from the rest but her knowing
what they were, knowing that they all possessed the killer instinct she had no
choice but to put them down. At times she would wonder if killing them was the
right thing to do but whenever guilt would cloud her judgment memories of her
family would swamp her mind and she would be cruelly reminded that there was no
such thing as a "friendly monster." She had vowed to herself that she would rid
the world of evil even if it took her the rest of her lonely, miserable life.

An overwhelming sense of exhaustion washed over her as she closed her eyes and
in no time she had drifted off into a relaxed sleep when the sudden noise of a
heavy object being thrown around startled her wide awake. With a gasp Alaine
shot upright in bed, quickly reaching for her M11-A1 she always kept tucked
under her pillow. Wrapping her finger around the trigger she briskly rubbed the
sleep out of her eyes as she scanned the dark room from any intruders. She
reached for the bedside lamp and turned on the light to see that everything was
the exact same way she had left it before getting into bed. She sighed as she
pressed the heel of her hand to her forehead. Just when she thought she was
going to get a peaceful nights sleep it gets taken away from her. As she began
to wonder where the noise could have possibly came from there was another loud
bang that was then followed by a powerful male voice shouting. She knew right
then and there that it had been coming from the room right besides her. You've
got to be kidding me she thought to herself as she stood on her feet and
stepped into her boots. Tucking her pistol into the back of the waistband of
her low rise jeans she bent down to loosely tie the laces. She pulled down the
hem of her teal cotton T-shirt, hiding away her firearm before she made her way
to the door. As she stepped outside the yelling became louder and she was able
to distinguish the sound of another male voice talking calmly back to the one
who was shouting his head off. As she reached their door she plastered a sweet
smile on her face as her knuckles lightly raked against the wooden door with
soft three knocks. All of a sudden things became quiet and she could faintly
hear the sound of heavy feet scuffling around and she nearly jumped when the
door unexpectedly swung open to reveal a gargantuan man with shaggy chestnut
brown hair towering over her with a frown creasing his forehead that quickly
faded away when he noticed her standing just outside the door.

Shoving her hands into her pockets Alaine cocked her head to the side and her
grin widened. "Hey," she sweetly spoke. "I hope I'm not intruding but it's the
middle of the night. You think you can keep it down a bit?"

Just as the man was about to reply the gruff voice she had heard earlier spoke
up from inside the room, a hint of annoyance being audible in his tone. "Who is
it, Sam?"

With a roll of his eyes the tall man had turned his head to look back at
whoever spoke to him. "Nobody, Dean. Just the girl next door."

At that very instant an epiphany struck her as her brows raised in slight
surprise. She finally remembered why the Impala parked outside seemed so
familiar to her. "Sam and Dean? As in Sam and Dean Winchester?" she quizzically
asked as Sam's head snapped around to look directly at her, his shoulder length
hair brushing past his face with the hast movement. "Well I'll be damned."

                "How do you?-" were the only words Sam was able to get out
before Dean emerged from behind him and pushed him out the way.

Grabbing hold of Alaine's shoulders Dean hauled her inside of the room and
roughly shoved her up against the wall. "Who the hell are you?" he snapped as
his luminous forest green irises stared her down with ferocity being clearly
visible in them.

                "You wanna ease up there, tiger?" Alaine joked as she raised
her hands to show she was submitting.

Scrunching up his nose in anger Dean retrieved a gun from his waistband and
pressed the tip of the cold barrel to her forehead. "I asked you a question,"
he demanded, his warm breath washing over her face as he spoke. "You can either
answer it or get a bullet in your skull. Pick one."

                "Dean," Sam urgently muttered as he shut the room door close
and stepped up to him, his eyes drifting from Alaine's passive face to his
brother's infuriated expression. "Put the gun down."

                "We have no idea who she is. Gotta find out somehow." Dean's
eyes never left Alaine's as he continued to stand his ground, his grip on her
shoulders tightening as the tip of his fingers dug into her skin.

Moving closer to them Sam shoved his rather large hands into the pockets of his
denim jeans. "Don't you think your methods are a bit, unorthodox?"

                "I agree with Sam," Alaine spoke as she nodded her head over in
his direction. "Let me go and I'll tell you who I am."

Dean was hesitant to release her but with a deep sigh and the insisting voice
of his brother behind him he finally lowered his gun, taking a step back to
give her enough room to breathe. Without saying a word Alaine went to retrieve
her gun from behind her when Dean's was pointed directly back at her.

                "Easy there," he warned, his finger curling over the trigger
and Alaine slowly placed her weapon over the wooden table besides her. Seeing
that she was now unarmed he lowered his gun once again, still feeling unsure of
the woman who stood before him and his brother.

                "What a way to treat a lady," she chuckled, the warm sound
putting the men slightly at ease. "Are you always this hostile?"

Tucking his .45 caliber back into the waistband of his jeans Dean furrowed his
brow. "Enough with the jokes, sweetheart. Care to tell us how the hell you know
who we are?"

With a smile tugging at the corners of her lips Alaine stepped forward. "I can
do better than tell you," she spoke. "I'll show you."

The brothers exchanged a quick look of confusion between each other right
before Alaine wrapped her hands around the hem of her shirt and lifted it up to
expose her bare abdomen. Sam's face quickly flushed a light pink as Dean's eyes
widened with awareness. Right over her rib-cage there was a tattoo of an anti
possession symbol.

                "You're a-"

                "Hunter," Alaine interjected. When she knew they had clearly
seen her tattoo she then lowered her shirt before plopping herself down on the
wooden chair next to her. "Name's Alaine Ventura."

                "Ventura," Sam murmured, his head cocking to the side as he
took a seat on one of the queen sized doubles. "Why does that sound familiar?"

                "Probably because we met when we were kids," Alaine replied to
the question Sam had asked himself.

                "What?" Dean sternly asked as he folded his arms over his
chest.

Placing her hands over her knees Alaine leaned forward in her seat. "It was
'95, mid summer. Your Dad was out hunting a couple of werewolves in Utah when
he stumbled across the help of my father. You couldn't be no older than
sixteen."

                "I remember that," Sam spoke, turning to face his brother. "We
were staying at that broken down Motel that didn't have any working A/C's."
With a smile Sam turned back to look at Alaine who he now finally recognized.
She had greatly changed since the last time he saw her. She was slimmer and her
hair had grown out from the short bob cut she had before.

                "Your father was Hector Ventura. Ex-Marine just like our dad."

Dean glanced between Alaine and his brother with a perplexed expression written
on his face. "Am I missin' something?"

Just as Sam went to speak up Alaine cut him off. "You really don't remember?"

Dean's eyes were now glued to Alaine's face as he tried as hard as he could to
recall whatever faded memories of her he had buried in the back of his mind. He
had came across a ton of females when he was young, most of them he completely
forgot about while others he remembered vividly for various reasons. He began
to study her features more intently-- her sultry lips, her even toned olive
skin, her long thick chocolate brown hair, her radiant hazel eyes. Just when he
thought he'd actually forgotten who she was a name popped into his head, a
nickname he had given a girl he had met when he was a teenager, a girl that had
changed his life.

A look of utter realization spreading across his face Dean swallowed hard as he
cocked his head to the side, not believing that she was sitting before him
after they had departed all those years ago. "Lainey?"

                "That's right," Alaine chuckled, the surprised expression on
Dean's face causing her to smile wholeheartedly. "It's me."

With a scoff and a shake of his head Dean plopped himself down on the bed
behind him as a sincere smile tugged at the corners of his lips. "Wow, I
thought I'd never see you again. I mean-- after the case was solved you and
your dad disappeared without even sayin' goodbye."

                "My father wasn't one for formal farewell's. It was always a
'get in, get out alive' kind of thing."

                "Well, it's good to see you're still in one piece."

She smiled, leaning back in her seat. "I was taught by one of the best."

                "How is your dad?" Dean asked and the painful memories Alaine
had managed to repress came flooding through like a burst dam. He had struck a
raw nerve with the mentioning of her father. She had tried so hard to forget
everything and she wanted to avoid having to relate to him that her father was
no longer alive.

Just as Alaine began to think about any possible lie she could give him Sam's
sudden movements from the other side of the room caught her and Dean's
attention, distracting them both from the question he had just asked. He had
stood to his feet and languidly rounded the foot of his bed. Leaning down he
retrieved a large sized travel bag from underneath it and placed it atop of the
bed. The look of Dean's angered countenance alerted her that it was time for
her to go as she saw him briskly move from the bed over to his brothers side. 

                "It's getting late, I'm just gonna head back to my room" she
awkwardly muttered, gaining the attention of both men as she got up from her
seat and made her way over to the door. "It was great running into you guys
again."

                "See you around, Alaine," Sam waved as she stepped outside and
turned back around to shut the door. Turning to look at her Dean gave her a
solemn smile before giving his back to her and roughly snatching the bag away
from Sam. Exiting their room and making her way towards hers when she heard
Dean shout again and knew that it was going to be an extremely long night.
 
                                                                               
                                        *     *     *     *     *
 

        It had been no later than ten a.m when Alaine awoke, the sunlight
beaming through the cheap white drapes illuminating the entire motel room. With
a sigh she groggily climbed out of her bed and dragged herself over towards the
small bathroom, shutting the door once she found herself inside. She began to
peel off her clothes, leaving them in a neat pile on the tiled floor before
tying back her long hair and stepping into the bathtub. Pulling the curtain
close  and turning the shower knob she groaned as the pressure of the water
spewing from the shower head washed over her, gently kneading her aching back.
She reached for her washcloth hanging over the rail and squirt a bit of her
Shea butter and vanilla body wash into it then underwent the process of
cleansing her entire body. After spending several minutes relishing in the
sensation of the warm water running across her skin she then stepped out onto
the brown bath rug and wrapped her dripping body into a too small cotton towel.
Once she had finished brushing her teeth and gargling a bit of mouth wash,
Alaine stepped back into the room and waltzed on over to her duffel bag that
sat atop of a wooden chair. She fished out a pair of washed up jeans and a
plain white cotton v-neck along with underwear when there was a sudden yet
sharp knock at her room door. She glanced over at the digital clock on top of
the bedside table and thought that it could be the housekeeping lady. Tossing
her clothes back onto the mattress she padded her way over towards the front of
the room, wrapping her hand around the doorknob and yanking it open. To her
utter and complete surprise instead of it being housekeeping it was no other
than Dean Winchester. A smirk formed on his glorious face as he noticed that
she had been merely dressed in a towel that didn't really cover up much of her
body.

                "Dean," she gasped in surprise as she moved behind the door in
attempt to shield herself from his piercing gaze. "What are you-"

                "Sorry," he chuckled, rubbing at the back of his neck as his
eyes traveled down from her flawless face to her clavicle where he could
faintly see the swell of her breast peeking through the top of her towel. "I
had no idea you weren't, decent. I can come back if you want."

                "It's okay. Come on in."

Completely hiding herself behind the door she gestured for Dean to step inside.
With an apologetic smile he strode past her and over to the center of the room.
"Were you gettin' ready to go somewhere?" he asked as he turned around to face
her. A warm blush creeped up the back of his neck to see her long bare legs as
she gave her back to him to shut the door. He couldn't help but naturally think
of what her body looked like underneath the thin fabric and when she whirled
back around he forced himself to make eye contact with her.

                "I was just about to get dressed," she replied as she made her
way over to where he stood. "If you could just give me a couple of minutes,
I'll be right out."

                "Yeah. Sure," Dean nodded in response as Alaine stood besides
him to reach down to collect her articles of clothing from atop the bed. Just
as she walked passed him he caught a slight whiff of her alluring scent and
felt the palm of his hands begin to moisten as inappropriate thoughts started
to swirl around in his mind. With an exasperated sigh he plopped himself down
on her bed and patiently awaited for her to come back out as he began to
reminisce on the past.

                "Dean, are you sure you want to do this?" Alaine had softly
asked from the back of John Winchester's car, the cool leather pressing against
her bare legs as she stretched herself across the seat.

It was the middle of the night. Both of their fathers had gone out to find the
werewolves hiding place while they had stayed behind. John had hopped into
Hector's truck, leaving his Impala parked at the back of the Motel. Sam was
sound asleep inside while Dean and Alaine decided to sneak out. Being teenagers
and never really having time for fun they took advantage of the absence of
their parents and darted into the back of the car before they could be seen by
anyone who could have been lingering around.
 
With a sly grin Dean clambered into the vehicle, shutting the door as he slowly
hovered over Alaine. "It's either now or never."

He tried the best he could to keep up his appearances but deep down he was a
nervous wreck. He had pictured what it would be like to lose his virginity but
now that the moment had come he wasn't quite sure what to do. He'd seen the
action that goes down in movies and in porn, the guys always took control with
great confidence. What confidence could he possibly have, it being his first
time ever sleeping with a girl. He was anxious, his palms were sweating, he was
dreading making himself look like a fool before her so he did what he thought
was right. Leveling his body with hers he slowly leaned down and kissed her,
keeping his eyes open to study the expression on her face. With a small sigh
Alaine had wrapped an arm around his neck, gently curling her fingers into his
soft, short hair as he continued to give her small, tender kisses.

                "Dean," she spoke, pulling her lips away from his to look into
his worried eyes.

                "Did I do something wrong?"

Smiling Alaine gently shook her head as she ran her hand down the length of his
arm, her fingers tracing over his skin in small circles. "Why don't you let me
take over?"

Dean was reluctant at first. He didn't want to seem like a chump, letting a
woman take control but as he felt Alaine's other hand move towards the buckle
of his belt he couldn't help but comply to what she wanted to do. Swallowing
hard Dean nodded his head and that was all the reassurance she needed to make
her move. In the blink of an eye she had completely unbuttoned and unzipped his
jeans, pushing the denim fabric down his hips as she sat upright. Taking his
full bottom lip in between her teeth she softly bit down, forcing a small groan
of surprise to escape Dean's mouth. She moved her hands over to the hem of his
T-shirt and began to lift it up the length of his body. Leaning back on his
knees Dean gave her enough room for her to pull it over his head and she tossed
it onto the floor of the car.

                "Take off my shorts," Alaine commanded and Dean swallowed away
the lump that had formed in his throat. With sweaty hands he fussed with the
button, cursing under his breath when he saw that he couldn't get it undone.

Alaine chuckled as she pushed his hands away to unbutton it herself then nodded
at him to proceed. He was becoming frustrated. He was embarrassing himself in
front of her and part of him just wanted to call it a night and go back into
his room before he made things worse but as he gently tugged on the shorts his
gaze fell to see her bright pink panties and his mind fell back to the goal at
hand - losing his virginity. Pulling it down the length of her smooth legs he
threw the shorts over his shoulders, not caring where the article of clothing
landed inside of the car. As he was about to kiss her once more she had
abruptly shoved him back by his shoulders and he saw a flare in her eyes that
caught him by surprise.

                "Sit back," she ordered yet again and Dean did as he was told.
He watched as she straddled his lap, her fingers immediately finding their way
into his hair and roughly tugging his head back. She ran the tip of her tongue
across her dry lips before taking his mouth in hers. With a sigh she began to
gently rock her hips against the erection that had been growing through the
fabric of his boxers and Dean couldn't help but groan. She continued the
torturous motion, utterly enjoying the low noises that were coming from him as
she became aroused herself.

                "God. Lainey," Dean muttered against her lips as he closed his
eyes, his hands balling into fists at his sides as the warm sensation he was
feeling in his lower abdomen began to spread all over his body.

Alaine pulled away from Dean to look at the expression on his face and she
smiled to see he was struggling to keep his breathing under control. Leaning
back in his lap Alaine pulled off her shirt, tossing it onto the seat. Dean's
eyes flew open at her sudden movement and widened in surprise as he saw her
hand reach behind her to unclasp her white cotton bra. Seeing it on the T.V
screen and seeing it in real life were two complete different things and he now
knew that the real thing was way better than what he had imagined it would be.
Dean's heart began to race as the straps of Alaine's bra slowly slipped down
her shoulders to reveal her bare breasts. He was now standing at complete
attention as he felt her hands traveled to his groin, her fingers lightly
brushing past his erection as she motioned for him to lift up his hips. Leaning
into him Alaine tugged on his boxers, setting him free and Dean couldn't
control the urge to feel the softness of her lips. Cupping the back of her head
he brought her face down to his as he kissed her with force, their teeth
clashing against one another. Dean muttered an apology as Alaine smiled, her
hands resting over her bare thighs.

                "It's okay," she sweetly reassured as she placed one hand on
his shoulder. Dean was confused as to what she was about to do but as soon as
he felt her small hand wrap around his shaft he couldn't help but let out a
strangled moan. Lifting herself up onto her knees she positioned his erection
right at her opening and his breath hitched in his throat as she gently stroked
him.

                "Lainey," he murmured in desperation as her hand moved up and
down his entire length. He wanted more. He wanted it all and it felt as if she
was just toying with him. Reaching into the pocket of his jeans Alaine
retrieved the condom he had been saving for the occasion and ripped open the
foil packet with her teeth. Dean watched as she placed the latex object over
his head and rolled it down his now fully erect manhood.

Grabbing hold of her hips Dean closed his eyes as he rested his head back
against the seat, his voice coming out in the form of a strained moan as he
spoke."Please."

The sound of him pleading her to give it to him nearly drove her wild and she
couldn't bare the torture any longer. With her hand still tightly wrapped
around the base of his erection she moved the fabric of her panties out of the
way and with a deep breath she gently took him in.

                "Oh God," Dean let out in a rush, his grip on her painfully
tightening as she proceeded to slowly move down the rest of his length. What he
was feeling was utterly inexplicable and it took his breath away.

Alaine winced as she slid all the way to the base of his shaft. Gritting her
teeth she shoved her face into the crook of his neck to hide her pained
expression as she gripped his shoulders and slowly lifted up off of him. Dean
was in utter bliss, the feeling of her tightness wrapping around him sending
his mind into another dimension of pleasure as she eased herself onto him once
more. The slow motion was bittersweet torture - he needed to feel more of her.
Sucking in a deep breath she slowly raised her hips again when Dean suddenly
slammed himself up into her. A muffled scream escaped Alaine's throat as she
buried her face deeper into his neck. Dean was too lost in the moment to even
realize Alaine was gripping his shoulders as if for dear life as he slowly
lifted her off of him and pushed himself back into her with more force.

                "Dean," she whimpered as the pain she had felt was quickly
replaced with an electrifying sensation of pleasure that began to ripple
through her with every slow but hard thrust of his hips into her. Her body
began to rapidly climb as his tempo gradually increased and she called out his
name once more, the sound of her pleading moans ringing in his ears as he felt
himself close to climaxing.

                Dean... Oh, Dean... DEAN...DEAN!

Dean whirled his head around to see that Alaine had been standing at the foot
of the bed, fully dressed with her hands impassively at her hips as she stared
down at him.

                "Are you okay?" Alaine questioned, brow raised as she studied
the flustered expression on his now reddened face.

                "Yeah," Dean replied, his gruff voice sounding slightly
strained. Clearing his throat he rubbed his sweaty palms over his jeans as he
abruptly stood on his feet. "I was just, uh - lost in thought."

                "Well I've been standing here for a while, what the hell were
you thinking about?"

He felt his ears become hot as his mind began to replay the memories of that
heated moment all those years ago that took place in the back seat of the
Impala. "Nothing," he quickly muttered, scratching at the light stubble that
had formed on his face as he pushed his dirty thoughts to the back of his mind.

With a skeptical smile Alaine walked over to her duffle bag and began to
reorganize all of her items as she spoke to Dean. "So, to what do I owe this
pleasant surprise visit?"

Walking over to where she stood he folded his arms over his chest and deeply
sighed. He didn't like venting his problems to anyone but given the
circumstances, he had no choice. "It's Sam."

Alaine paused for a moment, turning her head to look into his tired eyes. She
remembered hearing them heatedly arguing through the walls the night before
while she had laid in bed, trying as hard as she could to fall asleep. "What's
wrong with him?"

                "We got into this - fight.  He snaked my car keys while I was
asleep and just left."

                "Do you know where he went?" she asked, completely giving her
his attention as she could see the anxious expression on his face.

Running his hand through his short hair he let out a frustrated sigh. "Yeah,"
Dean replied. He knew that there was only one place Sam could ever possibly go.
"Lebanon, Kansas."
***** Chapter 2 *****
        "Sam!" Dean shouted at the top of his lungs from the balcony that
overlooked the main room of the Bunker. His resonant voice echoed throughout
the enclosed space and vibrated off the walls as he descended the steps and
proceeded to make his way into the library which to his surprise was vacant.
Cursing under his breath he made his way down the long narrow hallway as he
continued to call on his brother and came to a halt when he approached Sam's
bedroom. The door was ajar and there he was, folding his clothes and neatly
packing them away into a travel bag, his hair flopping over his face as he
leaned down to store away his belongings.
        "Way to leave me behind, Sam," Dean snapped as he entered the room. He
watched as Sam stood upright, tucking a strand of his long hair behind his ear
before walking on over to the nearly empty dresser.
        "I knew you'd find a ride," Sam nonchalantly spoke, turning his back
towards his brother as he took out a pair of jeans from an open drawer along
with a couple T-shirts.
        
        "You could've at least told me where you were goin' - I mean, you had
me worried sick." Dean shoved his hands into his pockets as he stepped over to
the foot of Sam's bed, taking a quick glance into the travel bag he had set
atop the mattress. "What's all this for?"
Standing besides his brother Sam stuffed the rest of his clothing into his
luggage then zipped it up. "I'm leaving."
        "Woah," Dean objected, placing a hand over Sam's shoulder and turning
him to face him. "You better not be doing' what I think you're about to do
'cause that'll be incredibly stupid."
Sam's silence gave away the very thing that had been tormenting his brothers
mind and he didn't even flinch when Dean began to rant.
        "You gotta be friggin' kidding me," Dean shouted, a scowl forming on
his face as he threw his hands up in the air and turned away. "There's no way
in hell I'm lettin' you go after Gadreel by yourself."
        "Dean, I can do this on my own," Sam passively interjected and Dean
snapped around to face his younger brother with an infuriated countenance. "I
need to do this alone.
Standing his ground Dean stepped up to Sam and snatched the travel bag out of
his hand. "No, Sam. You don't-"
        "Did you forget you're the cause of all that's happened. Kevin's death
is on your hands, Dean. If you would've just let me die like I wanted to he'd
still be alive."
        "Don't you dare say that to me," Dean barked, a hurt expression
spreading across his face as Sam gave his back to him and walked to the other
side of the room. "You think I don't know that? You think that ain't somethin'
that eats away at me everyday? I am well aware of it. I don't need you to throw
it in my face."
With a sigh Sam ran a hand threw his hair as he briefly closed his eyes. "I'm
sorry, but look at what's come of your selfishness."
        "Selfishness?" Dean echoed, anger being audible in his voice as he
dropped the travel bag back onto the bed and walked over to where Sam stood.
"Bringing you back from the brink of death was me being selfish? I did it for
you-"
        "No. Dean," Sam now began to shout as the patience he had been
struggling to keep a hold of left him in a rush. "You did it for yourself. I
had accepted my fate, you just couldn't let me go because you're so afraid of
being alone. I mean, let's be honest here. Who else do you have other than me?
Bobby's dead, now so is Kevin."
        "Sam-" Dean had begun to speak only to be rudely cut off by his
brother.
        "I've tried to work things out, I've tried to look past all that's
transpired but it's just not in me to forgive you."
Dean's face fell as his brother walked past him and moved over towards the bed
to pick up his bag. "So that's it?" he asked with a scoff as he shook his head
in disbelief. "You're just gonna go after Gadreel without any backup?"
        
        "That's the plan, Dean," Sam bitterly replied, walking out of the room
and making his way through the Bunker with his brother trailing behind him.
When the library came into view Dean stopped in his tracks and called out to
Sam in hopes that he'd come into reason.
        "You need me, Sam. You need me and you know it!"
Turning around to face his brother one last time Sam softly shook his head as
he reached into the pocket of his jacket. "I don't need you," he sternly spoke,
tossing the keys to the Impala onto the wooden rectangular table. "Not
anymore."
        
        "Sam, don't you walk away from me," Dean yelled as his brother
proceeded into the circular room and walked over to the staircase that lead up
to the balcony. He watched as Sam ascended the steps and his voice became
louder and more demanding as he stepped out the doorway. "Sam!"
The loud sound of the iron door slamming shut echoed throughout the Bunker
leaving Dean with an empty feeling settling in his gut. His head began to spin
as he lost control of his temper. With a swift movement he swept his arm across
the table, knocking to the floor the green desk lamp and a few books that had
been neatly stacked.. His chest heaving Dean set his palms flat atop the
polished surface and hunched over, his head hanging as he closed his eyes. He'd
gotten into many fights and arguments with Sam where horrible things had been
said and either one walked away but something about the surety in his brother's
voice when he said he didn't need him anymore told him that things definitely
weren't the same. For years Dean had given Sam his life, he had sacrificed
himself for the well being of his brother, he countlessly put his life on the
line to keep him out of harm's way to then be treated so harshly. Aside from
the mistakes he had committed Dean always did his best to look out after Sam.
He spent the majority of his life by his side, his brother was all he knew and
he couldn't fathom the thought of no longer having him around.
Dean had been lost in his own thoughts that he hadn't even noticed that someone
had entered the Bunker and began to make their way over to where he stood. The
velvet sound of a familiar female voice softly calling out his name brought him
back to reality and he snapped his head in the direction of where it came from,
a frown creasing his forehead. The expression on his face quickly changed when
he saw who had been standing merely three feet away.
        
        "Alaine," he spoke in gruff acknowledgement, standing upright to face
her. "I thought you left."
        "I just wanted to make sure you were alright." Glancing over towards
the books scattered around the floor she lifted her gaze back up to look at
Dean and shoved her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket. "I see things
didn't go too well."
        "Thanks but I'll be fine. You probably got somewhere to be, don't let
me hold you up." With a small but forced smile Dean turned his back to Alaine
and made his way over to the kitchen, immediately searching for a clean glass
he could pour liquor into but seeing that they were all dirty and stacked into
the sink he slammed the cabinet closed and resided to drinking his bourbon
straight out the bottle. Twisting off the cap he hesitated before bringing up
the rim to his mouth and taking a huge gulp. The familiar warm burning
sensation the alcohol left behind as it smoothly slid down his throat had set
his mind at ease as he pursed his lips. During times of distress he found that
turning to a bottle of Jim Beam was the best comfort he could get. At that very
moment he thought that maybe he was meant to be alone. Everyone around him
always ended up hurt or worse - dead. He was better off cut off from the world.
Wherever he went chaos and demise followed right behind, taking away whatever
he cared for most.
While Dean drank away his misery Alaine had clambered back into her truck. She
had sat with her hands firmly gripping the steering wheel, staring out into the
dark road ahead through the windshield as she couldn't bring herself to drive
away. What type of person would she be to leave Dean when he needed someone the
most? Although he tried to hide it she knew that he was falling apart at the
seams. All the traumatic events from the past years had been catching up to him
and it was no surprise he was bound to feel overwhelmed. She understood how
difficult trying to act as if everything was alright could be when in reality
it felt as if the world was coming to an end. She knew that the wall he had
built up around himself was going to fall apart sooner or later and felt that
when that moment arrived it'd be best if he wasn't alone to suffer through the
built-up anguish he had managed to repress. With a sigh Alaine took the key out
of the ignition and jumped out her truck, rounding the back of it to look
through the trunk for the duffel bags that contained her weapons and clothes.
After making sure she grabbed everything she needed she proceeded to make her
way back down into the Bunker.
Dean had been sitting at the table, the whiskey bottle clutched firmly in his
hand as he stared off into the distance. The loud thud of Alaine's bags hitting
the wooden surface startled Dean and he turned his head to see she was standing
beside him, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
        "I hope you don't mind but I thought I'd stay since I don't really have
anywhere else to go," Alaine spoke, half expecting for Dean to object but was
surprised when he smiled up at her.
        "You sure movin' in with me is a good idea?" he asked, a sly grin
forming on his face as he turned in his seat. "You might have trouble tryin' to
keep your hands off me."
With a scoff Alaine playfully slapped him in the back of his head as she made
her way past him towards the kitchen. "In your dreams, Winchester."
Dean chuckled, running the tip of his tongue over his bottom lip as he watched
Alaine, her slender hips swaying side to side as she gracefully walked away.
This should be interesting he thought to himself as he pushed his chair back
and stood on his feet. From inside the kitchen Alaine had been rummaging
through the contents of the fridge as Dean appeared in the doorway, his eyes
falling to the roundness of her backside as he took another gulp from his
bottle.
        "Okay. Seriously, we need to stock up on real food. This fridge is full
of week old takeout." Standing upright Alaine turned around to see Dean biting
his lip. Brow raised she folded her arms over her chest. "You think you could
go out and pick up some stuff?"
        "Anything for you, sweetheart," Dean winked.
With a roll of her eyes she moved over to the sink, turning on the faucet and
beginning to wash the clutter of dirty dishes that were piled in an unorganized
way.
        "You don't have to do that. I was planning on gettin' to it."
        
        "Oh yeah?" Alaine asked, sarcastically. "When?"
        "Uh, well-" Dean begun, rubbing at the back of his neck as he attempted
to come up with an excuse.
With a shake of her head Alaine chuckled as she scrubbed the remnants of food
off of a porcelain plate. She was used to the messes men left behind. When
living with her brother and father she had no choice but to pick up after them.
It was something she was accustomed to doing and didn't mind it one bit. After
cleaning up the kitchen and being shown to the room that was now going to be
hers Alaine gave Dean a list of the items he needed to get and handed him a
fifty dollar bill, reminding him that whatever change was left over he was to
bring it back to her. Taking advantage of his absence she went on to shower and
change into something more comfortable so she could resume to picking up around
the Bunker. She hadn't noticed when she first stepped in but it was a complete
mess. Empty beer bottles along with crumpled up food wrappers were scattered
all throughout the place. She couldn't believe the clutter that was before her
eyes and was desperate to get rid of it. As a woman she couldn't stand living
in a place that wasn't properly sanitized. Whenever she stayed at motels she
would sterilize every visible surface with disinfecting cleaning products so
that she could settle in without the anxiety of knowing there was undiscovered
filth lying around chewing at the back of her mind.
When Dean strolled back in it was ten past eleven p.m and the refreshing scent
of lavender struck him as he walked into the library. Scrunching up his nose at
the overwhelming aroma he set the grocery bags atop the wooden table, his eyes
scanning the room and falling on Alaine who was on all fours, vigorously
scrubbing at a sticky stain on the waxed floor. Leaning back on her knees
Alaine wiped away the small beads of sweat that had damped her forehead with
her forearm and sighed, tossing the sponge back into the plastic bucket besides
her as she dried her damp hands with a dish rag.
 
        "Hey, Cinderella. Wanna ease up on whatever it is you're using?" Dean
spoke, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips as he walked over to her. "It
smells like the inside of Mr. Clean's ass in here."
Standing up onto her two feet she reached down to grab the cleaning products
she had already brought with her. "If this place weren't so filthy I wouldn't
have to use so much."
        "Ya' know, you really don't have to do all this." Bending down Dean
grabbed up the bucket and followed Alaine into the kitchen and watched as she
stored away everything she had used under the sink.
        "The place isn't going to clean itself, now is it?" Alaine rhetorically
questioned when she turned back around to face Dean, the brisk movement causing
her long ponytail to fall straight down her back.
        "Guess not," Dean chuckled, stepping over towards the sink, his hands
tightly holding the bucket as he tipped it over and dumped the dirty water down
the drain. Alaine could faintly smell the strong scent of whiskey on him and
assumed that he had came back three hours after she had sent him out because he
had made a pit stop at some bar. He dusted off his hands as he turned to face
her, their eyes locking for a brief second before he tore his gaze away. "It's
uh, been a long day. I'm just gonna head over to my room."
        "Yeah, sure," Alaine smiled, part of her hating that he was choosing to
seclude himself but she understood he needed his space on account of he had
just lost his brother.
Returning Alaine's smile he turned his back to her and walked off, leaving her
standing all alone in the empty kitchen as he retrieved his bottle of bourbon
from the library and then proceeded to his bedroom. Shutting the door behind
him he moved over to his bed, plopping down atop the cushion as he kicked off
his heavy biker boots and stretched himself across the mattress. With a sigh he
reached for the mp3 on the bedside table, slipping the headphones on and
resting his head against one of the pillows. Pressing play he folded his arms
over his chest and stared up at the ceiling as the soothing guitar strums of
Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here began to loudly play in his ears, sending his
mind into a passive and relaxed state.
When Alaine had finished up what she had started it was well after one A.M and
she was utterly spent from the eighteen hour drive out to Kansas she had done
and decided upon going to bed. Storing away the food she had asked Dean to go
out and buy into the fridge, along with the two six packs of beer he spent the
leftover change on she made her way down the hallway over to her room. Passing
Dean's door she came to a halt as she mentally debated on whether or not she
should check up on him and before she could stop herself she had wrapped her
hand around the doorknob, twisting it and slightly pushing the door open to
peek inside.
The light was still on. Dean was laying on his back, music blasting from his
headphones as his eyes were glued onto the ceiling. Alaine had called out to
him, completely unaware that he couldn't hear her. Alaine pushed open the door
a bit wider and Dean caught the movement from the corner of his eye. Turning
his head he saw Alaine standing just inside his room, hand on her hip as she
leaned into the wooden door.
        "Y'need something?" He dryly asked as he pulled off the headphones and
set them on the bed.
        "I just wanted to make sure you were okay," Alaine honestly spoke,
concern being audible in her voice as she watched him shift to sit upright on
the bed.
Resting his back against the wooden headboard Dean crossed his legs at the
ankles, tiredly rubbing at his face. "I'm fine."
        "I'm here if you feel like talking about it."
        "I said I was fine," Dean huskily retorted, giving her the hint that he
didn't want to be bothered by her.
Sighing Alaine nodded in understanding, muttering an apology as she went to
leave. "Goodnight," she called out to him as she shut the door and heard him
say it in return as she made her way over towards her bedroom at the other end
of the hall.
 
                                                                               
                                          *     *     *     *     *

               It was the break of dawn when Alaine awoke the following
morning. With a groan she clambered out of bed and lazily padded on over
towards the bathroom to brush her teeth. As she dressed herself into a plain
black T-shirt with light washed boot-cut jeans, mid-calf leather biker boots
and denim jacket she contemplated on buying breakfast. She snatched up her keys
from her bedside table and walked out of her bedroom. Making her way through
the bunker she saw that Dean was nowhere to be found and thought he'd still be
in bed. She hurriedly hopped into her truck and drove to Mankato which was less
than a half an hour drive from Lebanon in search of a fast food establishment
of some sort and resided to going into Bob's Inn. Striding into the welcoming
food establishment Alaine sat herself at a table by the window and was quickly
attended by a teenage waitress with ginger hair and braces.
        "What will you be havin' ma'am?" the girl asked in her thick country
accent. With a small smile Alaine ordered a coffee with a croissant and a egg
white omelet as she took out her laptop from her computer bag and sat it atop
the table.
With a curt but polite nod the girl turned on her heel and headed into the
kitchen with Alaine's food order written down on a slip of paper. Firing up her
computer Alaine immediately found an internet connection and begun to surf the
web. She couldn't stand the lack of action any longer. She was determined to
find a case even if it took her the entire day. For several minutes her eyes
remained glued to the screen and she barely acknowledged her food when it was
brought out to her. She scanned various articles in search for anything that
stood out to her as abnormal and nearly gave up after an hour but to her luck
she stumbled upon one that she knew without a doubt involved something
supernatural. Bookmarking the page she ate as quick as she could in
anticipation to get back to the Bunker and show Dean what she had came across.
After ordering something to take back to him she hopped back into her truck and
without wasting another minute she drove off.
Dean had been standing in the kitchen by the coffee maker, pouring himself a
cup when he heard Alaine loudly calling out to him. Stirring the sugar into his
coffee he stepped into the library, furrowing his brow as Alaine's yelling
became louder.
        "Dammit woman, I'm right here," he called back out to her as he walked
over to the table, pulling out a chair and taking a seat.
Alaine made her way into the library, tossing the brown paper bag of food at
him. "Good to see you're up and running," she said with a smile as made her way
over to him.
Raising the rim of his mug to his lips he lightly sipped his coffee. "What's
all the fuss about?" he asked, turning his head to look at Alaine who was
taking out her laptop from her computer bag. He watched as she set it down in
front of him and lifted up the screen.
        "Feast your eyes on this," she smiled, leaning over Dean's shoulder to
open up the web page she had been on earlier. Setting his mug down on the table
Dean leaned forward in his seat, his eyes scanning over the words on the
screen.
        "What exactly am I lookin' at?" he asked, scrolling down the rest of
the article.
        "Haunted ranch," Alaine replied as she moved in closer. "Chambers,
Arizona. I double checked and cross referenced everything, it's legit."
        "What's the story?"
Alaine went on to explain to Dean what she had discovered. The Cloverfield
Ranch was built in the early 1920's. Throughout the years the ranch had various
families inhabit it but there was one family that had stood out the most, The
Harrison family consisted of three children - a thirteen year old boy, a ten
year old girl and a nine month old infant. Jeremiah Harrison, the father of all
three had been know to be extremely violent, especially when drunk. He
constantly accused his wife of sleeping with the stockman and struck her
whenever he had the chance. One night after drinking himself into oblivion
Jeremiah went into the den where his wife and children were, unmounted his
fully loaded rifle from the fireplace and shot his family dead in cold blood.
He went on to take his own life the same night and when the sun rose the
following morning the family had been discovered by no other than the stockman.
The ranch being not too far off I-10 it was known to attract tourists every now
and then and teenagers as well. After the death of the Harrison family in the
fifties the place had been abandoned in completion and for over sixty years
there had been a total of fifteen disappearances around the area, none being
properly investigated. It was said by the locals that the spirit of Jeremiah
Harrison continued to linger in the ranch after all those years.
        "Alright. I'll check it out," Dean spoke, rubbing at his neck when
Alaine had finished talking.
A smile forming on her flawless face she placed her hand at the back of Dean's
chair as she reached in front of him to shut the computer screen. "Great, if we
leave now we can get there before five tomorrow afternoon."
        "We?" Dean questioned, looking up at her to see utter excitement
written all over her face.
With a sigh he rose to his feet. "There ain't no we. I'm doin' this alone," he
sternly spoke as he adjusted the rolled up sleeves of his navy blue button down
cotton shirt.
        "The hell you are. I found this case so we're doing this together," she
stated, standing upright and folding her arms across her chest.
        "No, you're gonna stay here and that's that. We're not having this
discussion." Dean began to walk away towards the kitchen and Alaine trailed
right behind him.
        "Why the hell not, Dean?" she questioned, watching as he went on to
ignore her. "I'm talking to you-"
        "Because everyone around me always ends up hurt," Dean snapped, turning
around to face her with a frown creasing his forehead as painful memories began
to swirl around in his mind. Alaine went to argue but her mouth snapped shut as
he continued to speak. "You'd be better off here, out of harm's way."
        "Dean," she gently spoke, noticing the concern in his eyes as she
stepped up to him. "I've been hunting for years. I can take care of myself but
I do appreciate you worrying about me. I can handle a little ghost."
He went to protest once more but Alaine raised her finger to his mouth,
shushing him as she pressed it to his lush lips. "Go get the car," she sternly
demanded.
Wrapping his hand around her small wrist he moved her hand away from his face
and pulled her to him, his eyes falling to the surprised expression on her
face. The closeness of their bodies made him anxious to feel her mouth pressed
against his. Ever since she had came back he couldn't stop thinking of how
beautiful she had become. Nineteen years down the road and she still managed to
take his breath away whenever he looked at her.
Running the tip of his tongue across his bottom lip Dean lowered his head as
his free hand went to grab hold of her slim waist. "I love a bossy woman," he
smirked, the smell of coffee on his breath making Alaine want to taste if from
his tongue. She began to feel an electric pull between the two, a pull she
hadn't felt since the last time she saw him all those years ago and her knees
nearly buckled.
        "I'm sure you do," Alaine murmured back, the sound of her velvet like
voice making the hairs at the back of his neck stand on end. His fingers began
to gently dig into her skin and before she could find herself falling into the
seduction of Dean Winchester Alaine pulled away, turning her back to him and
making her way down the hallway and towards her room. Dean had trailed right
behind her and stopped just inside the door, leaning against the door-frame and
watching her retrieve a duffle bag from under her bed and placing it atop the
mattress. She unzipped it and began to scan through her weapons, pulling out
her M11-A1 and ejecting the magazine to make sure it was loaded. Sliding it
back into place she tucked it away into the waistband of her jeans and closed
her bag back up before tossing the strap  over her shoulder.
        "You ready," she asked as she grabbed up a smaller bag full of clothes
from the foot of her bed.
With a smile Dean took out his car keys from his jean pocket and hooked his
finger through the ring. "Ready as I'll ever be."
***** Chapter 3 *****
               The half day drive to Arizona had been a quiet one for the most
part. Sitting mostly in silence, Alaine and Dean hadn't bothered to exchange
more than a few small words between one another, being that they were too tired
to even speak. The only audible noise was the gentle purring of the engine as
Dean guided his car down the slick dark road, his fingers firmly wrapped around
the leather steering wheel. Alaine looked out from the passenger window to see
that dawn was beginning to settle around them. Rolling down the window she was
welcomed by the crisp spring air that blew her long hair back and the fresh
scent of morning dew quickly filled the car. She settled comfortably back into
her seat, tucking her left leg under her rear as she closed her eyes and blew
out a sigh.

               "How much longer?" she questioned, stifling a yawn as she
stretched her arms out in front of her.

Tearing his gaze away from the road Dean looked over to his right, taking a
quick glance at Alaine who seemed to be utterly spent from lack of rest. "Just
a couple more hours."

Alaine groaned in protest as she tiredly rubbed at her face. "Being crammed in
a car with you for fifteen hours isn't as pleasant as I thought it'd be," she
muttered as she folded her arms over her chest.

               "Why do you say that? I thought I was a joy to be around," Dean
spoke, a hint of humor coating his gruff voice as he focused back on the road.

Alaine shifted, her body now facing him as she leaned back against the car door
and propped up her legs onto the seat. "Well, you're not much of a talker. When
I think about it, even as kids you never really were. You always liked to keep
to yourself."

               "It's just how I am. The less people know about me, the better.
Can't go spillin' your life story to everyone you meet."

               "Sounds like you got trust issues," Alaine scoffed.

Glancing over at her once more he saw that she was staring at him intently, her
perfectly formed brows slightly raised as she studied him. She could see he was
well reserved, with many reasons for being so. Being a Hunter she had heard the
infamous stories of the Winchester brothers; how they had lost their father,
how they'd brought on the Apocalypse and she was sure there had to be more she
was unaware of.

Completely dismissing what she had said Dean reached over to the radio and
turned it on. Scorpion's Rock You Like a Hurricane began to play from the
speakers and he turned the dial to the volume, the strums of the guitar blaring
through the speakers which let Alaine know that he was done talking. With a
sigh she sunk back into her seat and stared out the open window at the tall
trees that zipped past along the road, briefly admiring the scenery when she
felt her eyes begin to get heavy. She had been awake for more than twelve
hours. Her body ached all over and she was in desperate need of sleep. When she
thought about it, she couldn't exactly remember when was the last time she had
gotten full eight hours of rest. It had been so long since she had ever
interacted with a person for more than a few minutes. She kept to herself, only
worrying about getting the job done and once that was over she moved onto the
next hunt. She chose to refrain from any sexual encounters with men along the
way; she preferred to stay unattached and reserved. She couldn’t afford to get
too close to anyone intimately or emotionally. Keeping to herself was always
the best way to go. Whenever she’d be out on a hunt and would take a little
rest stop at a bar to grab some drinks and unwind, men would always find their
way over to her. She’d shoot down every single one of their attempts to flirt;
some men would believe that she was either stuck up or didn’t play for their
team but in reality, she just wasn’t interested. She didn’t care for sex at
all. She had been abstinent for nineteen years of her life, not even exchanging
so much as a simple kiss and that’s how she chose to stay. It kept her focused
on what was more important which was to carry out her family’s wishes by
ridding the world of evil. She was always on her A-game and ready for whatever
danger came her way.

It was no later than seven A.M when Dean drove into the nearly empty parking
lot of a small rundown motel. Shutting off the engine he stepped out and
rounded the back of the car, popping open the trunk and retrieving his duffle
bag along with Alaine's. Lifting the lid to the secret compartment Dean
shuffled through his many weapons until he retrieved Ruby's knife and stuffed
it into the pocket inside of his jacket. Double checking to make sure he wasn't
seen stashing it away he then turned to the motel and began to make his way to
the check-in office with Alaine walking at a steady pace in front of him, her
wide hips swaying from side to side with every step as she stepped up to the
half open wooden door.

Stepping inside and making her way over to the front desk Alaine smiled at the
blond haired woman who sat in a wooden chair picking at a half eaten breakfast
burrito. "Good morning," Alaine spoke, plastering a smile to her worn out face.


Looking up from her food the woman returned the smile, tucking a short strand
of her hair behind her ear. "What can I do for you, miss?"

               "One double, please," Alaine replied as Dean stepped into the
office, letting the door slam shut behind him as he walked over to stand beside
Alaine. The woman stood from her seat to retrieve the sign in book from a
nearby bookshelf, placing it over the counter and opening it up to a blank
page.

Pushing it over to Alaine the woman's eyes met Dean's for a brief moment, her
face flushing a bright pink before she withdrew her gaze from his lightly
freckled face to look at the information Alaine was writing down into the book.
"I'm sorry, we only have a single available."

Before Alaine could protest Dean spoke up from besides her, the richness in his
deep voice making the woman's knees buckle from behind the desk as he dug into
his pocket and retrieved a hundred dollar bill. "We'll take it," he spoke as he
handed the woman the money.

               "Here you go," the woman half stuttered as she handed Dean the
key with shaky fingers. "Enjoy your stay."

Thanking the now flustered clerk Alaine then followed Dean out of the office
and over to the room that they had no choice other than to share. Dean unlocked
the door and stepped inside, flicking on the light switch as he tread into the
room to throw their bags onto the neatly made king sized bed.

               "Okay, we have to set some rules here," Alaine sternly spoke as
she shut the door and removed her denim jacket, swinging it over the back of a
wooden chair.

               "Rules?" Dean questioned, brow raised as he unzipped his duffel
bag to retrieve his pistol. Alaine watched as he tucked it into the waistband
of his denim jean, his shirt rising up to expose the smooth skin of his lower
back.

               "I'll be taking the bed, you'll be taking the floor," she began,
her voice sounding authoritative as she walked on over to him.

Dean turned to face her, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips as he
adjusted his shirt to conceal his firearm. "Excuse me?"

Brow raised Alaine folded her arms over her chest. "Is there a problem?"

Hearing the seriousness in her voice Dean decided against making a smart joke
and shook his head in response as he checked his pockets for his car keys.
Turning his back to her Dean began to make his way over towards the front of
the room.

               "I'm heading out for some grub, want anything?" he asked as he
yanked the door wide open. Looking back at Alaine who had plopped down on the
bed he saw her shake her head and with that he stepped outside, shutting the
door close behind him before walking on over to his car and getting into the
driver's seat.

Alaine took advantage of Dean's absence to strip out of her clothing. Unzipping
her duffel bag she rummaged through what little she had packed in search for
something comfortable to sleep in when she realized that being in such a hurry
to leave she had forgotten to pack what she always wore when she'd go to bed
which was a simple over-sized sweatshirt. With a frustrated sigh she closed her
bag back up, deciding she would just sleep in the clothes she had been
previously wearing when an idea came to her. Dean's bag sat right beside hers
at the foot of the bed. No bothering to think about it she opened it up and
without having to dig through all its contents she came across a black cotton
t-shirt she could throw on. After slipping it over her head she then clambered
into the king sized bed and wrapped herself up into the sheets. Once she had
rested her head over one of the pillows it was not too long after that she had
fell into a profound state of slumber.

Dean hadn't come back until several hours later. As he stepped through the
front door his gaze searched the room for Alaine until they landed on the
covered up figure in the bed. He took a quick glance at the clock on the wall
which read ten past three. Kicking the door shut he then placed his half empty
cup of coffee over the surface of the table before walking on over to the bed.

               "Alaine," he softly called out to her. He watched as she lightly
stirred, her head turning from side to side before she deeply sighed. Realizing
that wasn't going to work he reached out a hand to lightly touch her shoulder.
He shook her gently a couple of times until her eyes fluttered open.

               "I got you some coffee," Dean smiled as he extended the cup he
had got for her. With a groan Alaine rubbed at her eyes in attempt to bring her
blurred vision into focus.

               "How long have I been asleep?" she asked as she pushed herself
up into a sitting position. Taking the cup from Dean she thanked him and
brought the rim up to her lips.

               "Not sure. I'd say four, five hours tops."

Alaine lightly hummed in appreciation as she welcomed the warmth of the coffee.
It was exactly was she needed to keep her alert for what was to come.

               "We'll be heading out as soon as it gets dark," Dean spoke as he
moved to the foot of the bed. "I did some thorough research; this son of a
bitch doesn't come out til the sun's down. No one's ever seen him in broad
daylight."

               "Dean Winchester doing research?" Alaine teased, a smirk tugging
at the corners of her lips as she set her cup on the bedside table. "I guess
you're not all brawn."

Zipping open his duffel bag Dean began to look through it. "Sweetheart, I'm so
much more than just brawn."

               "Apparently." Alaine pulled back the sheets as she swung her
bare legs over the edge of the bed. From the corner of his eye all Dean saw was
skin and immediately looked up from what he was doing. He watched as she got
out of bed and placed a hand over her mouth to stifle a yawn.

               "Is that mine?" Dean questioned, brow raised in surprise as he
realized why the shirt she had on looked so oddly familiar to him.

Pulling down on the hem Alaine smiled up at Dean. "Oh, right. Sorry about
that." Snatching up her bag from the bed she waltzed her way over to the
bathroom and shut the door.
 
 
                                                                               
*     *     *     *     *
               

               "Do you have your gun?"
               "Yes."
               "You got enough rounds?"

               "Yeah."

               "Do you-"

               "Dammit, Dean," Alaine interrupted with a grunt of annoyance.
"This isn't my first hunt."

               "I'm just trying make sure you're not goin' in there half-
cocked."

               "Thanks for the concern," she spoke as she finished up loading
her shotgun with cartridges full of rock salt. "I'll be fine." Before Dean
could say another word Alaine had already begun to make her way over to the
house through the dark.

With a sigh Dean slammed the trunk to his car close, holding his own shotgun
tightly to his side as he lightly trailed behind Alaine. The sound of dirt
crunching under heavy boots was the only audible noise throughout the night
aside from the nearby crickets along with the rattling of big cargo trucks that
drove past on the highway. Clicking his flashlight Dean shone the light on the
main house. They were able to see how battered and broken down it was. The
ceiling was caving in, the support beams were falling apart, the front door to
the home hung on its broken hinges.

               "Looks like a tornado hit this place," Dean spoke, following
Alaine onto the creaking wooden boards of the front porch. With trepidation
Dean followed Alaine into the foyer of the home, side-stepping over the gaping
holes throughout the vast space. "I think we should split up, that way we'll
cover more ground."

Alaine nodded in agreement at Dean's offer. "I'll take the house, you can check
out the horse corral."

               "Call me if you run into trouble."

Alaine watched as Dean made his way back outside then she herself proceeded to
walk deeper into the home, shining her own flashlight around as she steadily
walked down the hallway that lead to a parlor room. There laid an old rusted
piano, along with broken pieces of furniture, a dusty rug and a portrait of the
last family who inhabited the home. Tucking her flashlight under her arm Alaine
knelt before the massive frame, dusting it off with the palm of her hand. She
examined the faces of each family member. Everyone looked happy. They were all
smiling; all except for one person. The young man in the painting wore a grim
expression, misery being clearly noticeable on his face. She assumed that had
to be the eldest son of the family. Just as Alaine rose to her feet there was a
faint sound of the floorboards creaking in the nearby room. Being that she was
the only one inside Alaine's Hunter senses were on full alert as she raised her
shotgun. She carefully made her way back into the hallway, checking both
directions before she decided to move onto the back of the house. An eerie
feeling began to settle over her as she continued to search every room she came
across. Once she reached the stairs that lead to the second floor Alaine felt
the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end as a sharp chill shot down her
spine. The air around her became thick as she noticed the temperature
drastically drop.

               "I know you're here you sick bastard," Alaine sternly spoke,
taking light footsteps towards the front of the house when she suddenly felt a
gust of wind shoot past her. Sharply turning around she slowly walked
backwards, aiming her shotgun directly ahead.

She tightly wrapped her finger around the trigger in anticipation as she halted
her movements. "Show yourself!" she called out, her voice echoing throughout
the entire house. Alaine's eyes spread wide with fear as she felt the heavy
breathing of someone behind her right in her ear. Closing her eyes for a brief
moment she took a deep breath before hesitantly turning around, a look of utter
shock spreading across her face as she came to realize that the story behind
the haunting was completely false.

               "You," she murmured, attempting to take a step back when its
hands swiftly wrapped around her forearms. She quickly pulled the trigger and
watched as the apparition quickly dissipated into a small mist of white fog.
Cocking her shotgun Alaine went take a step when suddenly the floor beneath her
gave way, the wood cracking and breaking as she fell through. Her back hit the
ground with a loud thud, the force of her fall knocking  the wind out of her.
Her weapon and flashlight had flown out of her hands and landed by a nearby
rotting wooden barrel. A strangled groan escaped her as she attempted to turn
her body to push herself up into a sitting position but every muscle in her
body throbbed in agonizing pain. She cursed under her breath as she struggled
to fish her cellphone out the pocket of her jacket. Turning on the screen she
immediately searched for Dean's number and pressed the call button.

               "Did you run into trouble?" Dean's voice on the other line
teased once he had picked up.

Alaine coughed as she began to speak, feeling she couldn't properly breathe.
"Dean, we're not dealing with Jeremiah's spirit. It's his son."

There was a short pause before Alaine heard Dean shuffling on the other end.
"Well, that was unexpected."

               "Find his remains. Salt and burn them before he comes back."

               "Are you alright?" Dean asked, concern being audible in his
rough voice.

               "I fell through the floor, ended up down in the wine cellar.
I'll be okay."

Alaine briefly repeated to Dean the exact location of where the stockman had
buried the entire family, reminding Dean there wasn't much time before he
appeared again. With a grunt Alaine pushed herself up onto her feet, ignoring
the searing pain she felt shoot from the side of her head. Using the light from
her phone she scanned the ground in search for her shotgun when all of a sudden
she was slammed backwards into the wall. In an instant there were a pair of icy
cold hands wrapped tightly around her neck, constricting her windpipe and
causing her to gasp for breath. She stared into the bloodshot eyes of the young
man before her as she struggled to remain conscious, her hands shoving at the
solid spirit in attempt to free herself from his grasp. Tears sprung to her
eyes as his grip on her throat tightened further.  The ghost snarled in
satisfaction as it saw the light begin to go out of Alaine's eyes. Her hands
dropped to her sides as her body became limp. This was it, she thought to
herself. She was going to die by the hands of a ghost. The last living member
of her family, she never expected to die so soon. Just as she began to lose all
thought she was released and she collapsed onto the floor. She immediately
began to violently cough as air made its way back into her lungs. Through
clouded eyes she watched as the apparition shrieked in pain as it burst into
flames and completely vanished. It hadn't been her first near to death
encounter but it had been by far one of the worst.

               "Alaine!" Dean shouted as he kicked open the door to the cellar.
Running down the wooden stairs he frantically shone his light around in search
for her when he caught glimpse of a hunched over figure over to the far right.
He hurriedly made his way over to her, bending down and wrapping his hand
around her arm.

               "What took you so long," she snapped as she struggled to regain
her strength to stand. "I almost died."

Helping her to her feet Dean blew out a breath of relief as he threw his arm
around her waist and slowly guided her over to the stairs. "Yeah, almost."
 
                                                                             
                                                                               
                                     *     *     *     *     *

       
               Back at the motel Alaine sat in a chair at the table as Dean
rummaged through a medical kit. He pulled out gauze along with a small bottle
of alcohol and cotton balls. Twisting off the cap to the bottle he lightly
soaked the cotton ball then turned in his seat to face Alaine.

               "This is gonna burn," he warned her before leaning in and
beginning to clean the small gash on her left temple.

Alaine winced as she hissed in pain and moved her head away. "That hurts," she
whined, slapping away his hand.

               "Of course it's gonna hurt," Dean spoke, his eyes narrowing in
irritation as he went to reach for her wound again. "You need to hold still."

With a frustrated sigh Alaine folded her arms over her chest. "Fine."

Dean leaned in closer as he gently wiped away the dry blood that surrounded her
gash, his brow furrowing as he concentrated on the task at hand. Alaine
couldn't help but stare at his perfectly formed mouth and wonder what his lips
would feel like pressed against hers. The last time they were that close to one
another she felt the attraction that had been there between the two all those
years ago and questioned to herself if he felt it too. She began to study his
features. Everything seemed to be the same from when she last saw him except
for the fact that he had wonderfully aged like a good quality bottle of
expensive Scotch. Wrinkles began to lightly form on his forehead. She could see
what years of misery and pain had done to his once luminous chartreuse eyes.
They didn't posses the same vibrant color they had all those years ago. They
still managed to take her breath away but she could feel a darkness within them
every time she managed to stare for longer than just a few seconds. Her eyes
scanned over the rest of his face. There were a few small scars here and there
but she found him as gorgeous as ever. Although he seemed to be in one piece on
the outside Alaine knew very well that he was falling apart inside. She was
amazed at the fact that after everything he'd been through his sanity still
remained intact. His strength to keep pushing forward was admirable and it
reminded her of herself. She had been through her own handful of tragedies but
managed to still continue to fight. The thought of there being peace throughout
the world someday gave her hope and that hope is what she clung to for dear
life. Life for her wasn't going to get any better but she had made peace with
her past a long time ago. She accepted that her family was gone and her job was
to finish what they had started, in honor of their memory.

               "All done," Dean spoke, leaning back and tossing the blood
soaked cotton ball onto the table. He ripped open the gauze packet, gently
placing it over her wound. He instructed her to hold it in place as he taped it
down with medical tape.

She gave Dean a small smile as she watched him stand to his feet and push the
chair back into place. "Thanks."

               "Sure thing," he said as he returned her smile. "I'll let you
shower first, just don't take too long."

With a light chuckle Alaine cautiously rose to her feet, peeling off her jacket
and throwing it onto the chair before she snatched up her duffle bag and made
her way into the bathroom. She showered as quickly as she could, washing
herself along with her hair thoroughly. Dressing herself into a clean pair of
underwear she slipped on the shirt she had taken from Dean's bag earlier that
day, being thankful that he had let her keep it. After wringing her hair dry
and toweling it off she then stepped back into the room which to her surprise
was empty. She assumed Dean had went out for some air and didn't think much of
it. Climbing into bed she pulled the sheets over herself as she nuzzled her
head into one of the pillows. A wave of exhaustion washed over her as her
tensed body relaxed into the mattress.

Just as Alaine had suspected Dean had went out for some air. He stood just
outside the room, his cellphone in his hand as he dialed Sam's number for the
third time and only getting his voicemail. This time he decided upon leaving
him a message.

               "Sam, listen. I know you're mad and I don't have the right to
take that from you but can you blame me for what I did? I couldn't let you die,
Sammy. You've gotta realize that we're all we've got. Ain't no one else gonna
look out for you like I do. In this messed up world it's just you and me, man.
We can get through this together. You wanna find Gadreel? Fine, let's go find
him. You wanna seek revenge on that son of a bitch? I'll help you. Don't do
this alone. You need backup - you need me. We're brothers, and no matter what
goes down between us we'll always be brothers."

With a sigh Dean pressed the end button after recording his message into Sam's
voice mail. He hoped that he would come to his senses and realize that
everything he said was true. Shoving his phone back into his coat pocket Dean
decided on going back inside. Once he was in the room he locked the door and
began to remove his clothing. He was too spent to bother taking a shower and
made a mental note to take one in the morning. He tossed his jacket, flannel
shirt and jean over the back of a chair as he placed his boots by the door. He
turned off the light before he quietly made his way over to the bed. He went to
pick up one of the pillows so he could sleep on the floor when Alaine's voice
softly spoke to him.

               "You can lay down on the bed," she murmured, looking up at Dean
who stood at the other end in nothing but his black t-shirt and boxer briefs.
"I don't mind sharing." She watched as he climbed into the bed, the mattress
dipping with the weight of his body as he adjusted himself to lay on his back
with the sheets thrown over his torso. He deeply sighed as he closed his eyes,
feeling himself begin to slowly fall unconscious.

               "Dean," Alaine quietly whispered from beside him as her eyelids
began to drop.

               "Hmm?"

               "Goodnight," she said, her voice trailing off as she, without
realization, drifted off to sleep.
***** Chapter 4 *****
               The obnoxious blaring of a cell phone ringing in the distance
awoke Alaine from her slumber, her eyes fluttering open but then immediately
shutting close. From the window the intense sunlight beamed through the drawn
curtains, brightly illuminating the entire room which forced Alaine to shield
her face. She waited a few moments before she peeked her eyes open again then
begun to rub at them in attempt to bring her hazy vision into focus. Once she
was fully alert she came into realization that Dean's phone had been what
startled her awake. With a sigh she turned to face him, her arm outstretched to
touch him but she stopped herself as her eyes fell on his face. His once
hardened features were softened; his chiseled jaw laid relaxed as his
sculptured lips were parted to accommodate his shallow breaths. He laid on his
side with an arm tightly clutching a pillow to his chest as his face rested
against it; she could see there was a good amount of distance between them. She
half expected to wake up with Dean wrapped all around here yet she wasn't
surprised to see he was on the other side of the bed. She glanced on over to
the nightstand to see that the digital clock read ten past nine. Pushing
herself up onto one arm she lazily sat upright, swinging her legs over the side
of the bed as she pulled the sheets away from her body. She closed her eyes as
she yawned and stretched her arms above her head. As she was about to climb out
of bed she felt light movement coming from behind her and she turned her head
to see Dean beginning to wake up. He groaned, shifting to lay on his back as he
dug the heel of his hand into his eyes.

                 "What time is it?" he croaked, his voice coming out in a
hoarse whisper as he scratched at the stubble on his face.

                 "Nine."

 Another groan came from Dean as he dropped his arm back down onto the bed.
"Why does it feel like I never get enough sleep?"

                 "Probably because you don't," she responded as she stood from
the bed. She reached for her duffel bag that sat on the floor by the
nightstand, grabbing hold of it and tossing it onto the bed. Unzipping it, she
fished out a plain navy blue t-shirt along with a pair of jeans, a clean bra
and a pair of socks.

 Dean yawned as he uncovered himself and pushed himself to a sitting position.
"I'd kill for a full night's sleep where I can wake up the next day and not
feel like I've been crushed by a steamroller."

               "Well that makes two of us," Alaine chuckled as she pulled on
her jeans, zipping them up and buttoning them close.

 With a grunt Dean climbed out of bed and scratched at the back of his head as
he padded his way on over towards the bathroom.

 Alaine quickly removed the shirt she had on, changing into the one she pulled
out from her bag after she put on her bra and socks. Taking out her toothbrush
along with toothpaste she rounded the foot of the bed and waltzed into the
bathroom, not bothering to knock on the door.

 Dean's head snapped around to look behind him at Alaine who stepped up to the
two sided sink, not paying him any attention.

             "Seriously? You don't knock?" he asked, brow raised.

 Turning on the faucet she began to brush her teeth, shrugging her shoulders in
response to Dean's question.

             "Looks like someone doesn't have any manners," he scoffed with a
smile as he flushed the toilet and walked up beside her to wash his hands in
the other sink before re entering the bedroom to get his duffel bag. Taking out
a clean set of clothes, toothbrush, toothpaste and hair product he wandered
back into the bathroom, moving past her and stepping up to the shower. As he
began to undress himself, Alaine turned off the running water, drying her hands
and face on a clean hand towel by the sink before she ducked out of the
bathroom and closed the door behind her.

 Dean quickly showered and hastily dressed himself into a denim button down
with a gray t-shirt, boots, and jeans. After brushing his teeth and styling his
hair he stepped back into the bedroom.

 Alaine sat at the the edge of the bed, rummaging through her bag as he walked
past her to retrieve his duffle from the floor.

               "Before I forget, you got a call this morning,” she spoke up.

 Dean's head shot up to look at her. "From who?" he asked, sternly.

               "Don't know, I didn't answer it."

 In three steps he went from standing at the foot of the bed to standing by the
bedside table where his phone sat. Picking it up, he checked through the call
history to see he had one missed call from an unknown number. He half wondered
if it could have been Sam calling him. He pressed the number then raised the
phone to his ear. It rang three times before someone picked up. At first, all
Dean could hear was the sound of someone shuffling around until a voice came
flowing through the speaker of the phone.

                 "Hello, Dean."

 Rubbing at his forehead, Dean sighed. "Hey, Cas."

 It had been quite a while since they had spoke. Castiel had gone off in search
of Gadreel in belief he could help him get to Metatron. Weeks had passed since
Dean had heard a word from his angel friend,  he saw it as it being slightly
strange that he had decided to contact him now.

                 "I have word that Metatron is attempting to raise an army to
overtake Heaven. Gadreel is still nowhere to be found."

                 "Figures he'd go off the radar after what happened. Sam went
off to look for him."

                 "Alone?"

                 "Yeah," Dean sighed.

                 "And you didn't attempt to stop him?"

                 "There was nothin' I could do. He was set on going solo, I had
no choice but to let him."

                 "Dean, this is not good, he doesn't know what he's up against.
You have to find him."

                 "Sam made it pretty clear that he wants nothin' to do with me,
he'd do a helluva good job to cover his tracks so I won't find him."

                 "Leave it to me then. I should be able to track him easily,
I'll call when I find him."

 Dean went to speak again but the line had already went dead. With a scoff, he
plopped himself down onto the bed, clutching the phone in one hand as the other
rested flat against his thigh. Things were starting to get bad. With all of the
fallen angels roaming the earth and Metatron set on becoming God, nothing good
was sure to come out of it. He worried for his brother's safety. Being that his
job had always been to look out for him, Dean wouldn't forgive himself if
something were to happen to him.

                 "Dean?" Alaine called out from behind him. Reaching out a
hand, she placed her palm over his broad shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"You okay?"

 Dean sighed, sitting upright and rubbing at the back of his neck. "Yeah, I'm
good. Let's get going."

 Standing to his feet, he grabbed up his bag and double checked to make sure
all of his things were inside before making his way over to the door and
snatching up his car keys from on top of the table.

 Alaine ignored the fact that he had brushed off her touch, not thinking much
of it as it was pretty evident that something had got him upset. She didn't
bother to ask him what, she didn't try to question who it had been that called,
she left it at that. Following him out the motel room with her belongings in
her hand, she rounded the back of the Impala, tossing her duffle bag into the
trunk and shutting it close. After settling herself into her seat next to him,
Dean started up the car and backed out of the parking space before making an L-
turn onto the empty street and driving off.

                 "So, where off to next?" she asked after sitting in absolute
silence for several minutes.

 Dean kept his eyes glued on the road in front of him, responding to her
question without giving her the slightest glance. "You're goin' back to the
Bunker."

 Alaine's brows furrowed. "What do you mean I'm going back to the Bunker?"

                 "There's some stuff I gotta take care of, alone."

 She scoffed as she leaned back in her seat, folding her arms over her chest
and staring out the window. "You can't always do everything by yourself.
There's going to come a time when you'll need someone's help-"

                 "Well, I don't need yours," Dean clipped, a hint of
frustration being noticeable in his tone. "I don't need you runnin' around all
up in my business. Just stay at the Bunker 'til I get back."

 Alaine decided against arguing with Dean. She hated being kept out of the
loop; she wanted to help out to the best of her ability. What use could she be
of if she was always kept locked away.

                 "Fine."

 With a sigh, Dean turned to look at her. "I'm sorry, okay? I just  - I gotta
try to find Sam. There's a lot goin' on that you won't understand, I wouldn't
want you to get caught up in all this mess. It can get real ugly, real quick.
You wanna help? Keep yourself alive. You're no good to me dead."

                 "Dean," Alaine went to speak, but was cut off short.

                 "We were friends once, right?"

 Alaine glanced over to see he was looking at her intently. She began to think
back on all those years ago. In the short time period they had known one
another, they had built a unique friendship, a solid trust in each other.
"Yes."

                 "In this life, you're lucky to have a family, or friends.
Aside from Sam, there really ain't anybody left for me to care about. Everyone
we've ever been close to is pretty much gone because of us. My brother and I -
we got a lot on our plate, I'm sure you've heard some of the stories other
Hunters like passin' around. Anyone that gets too close ends up dead. I don't
want you gettin' all wrapped out in our mess because it always ends up bad."
Dean paused for a moment, his eyes locking with Alaine's briefly before he
turned to look back at the road. "So could you just promise me you'll stay
safe?"

 Alaine blinked a few times. She had been caught slightly off guard by the
amount of concern he was showing for her well being. Her eyes stayed fixed on
his hardened features. She now got a small idea of where they stood; they we're
friends, and that was good enough for her. Smiling, she looked away. "Sure
thing, Dean."

                                                                               
                           
 
                                                                               
                                    *     *     *     *     *


                
                Alaine found herself alone in the Bunker for five days, while
Dean went off to resolve his unknown business. He gave her cash for whatever
she needed and told her to make sure she's not followed whenever leaving or
going back to the Bunker. He gave her a small set of rules, and Alaine assured
him she was capable of holding down the fort on her own while he was away.

 Half reluctant to leave, Dean handed her a spare angel blade, his hand
lingering over hers as he intently stared down at her. "This is for defense;
works on angels and demons. You use this if you run into trouble. Do not
hesitate to-"

                 "Dean," Alaine smiled, taking the blade from him and placing
it over the table in the library. "I'll be fine. Now go, before you end up not
leaving at all."

 There was a quick flash of an unknown emotion in Dean's bright eyes; as quick
as it was there, it was gone, leaving Alaine curious as to what it was he was
thinking.

                 "Alright," he spoke, looking away from her and snatching up
his duffle bag. He stood before her for a second, then with a small nod, he
turned on his heels and made his way towards the iron staircase. He tossed the
strap of his bag over his shoulder and quickly ascended the steps, the resonant
sound of the iron door slamming shut seconds later echoing loudly.

 With a sigh, Alaine glanced down at the table. She picked up the angel blade
in her hand, holding it firmly in her grasp and studying it. It was her first
time ever seeing one. She was well aware of the angels falling from Heaven; she
didn't know why. The news had spread through the Hunters network like a
wildfire. Angels were popping up all over the place, inhabiting vessels, some
creating miracles all throughout the world while others chose to wreak havoc.
Humanity was in danger and it was up to people like Sam and Dean to save them
from utter destruction. Alaine was frustrated; she wanted to take part in it.
She wanted to be of aid to the Winchesters and fight alongside them. She had
been Hunting since she was eight and had a significant amount of skill and
experience to be able to handle whatever was thrown at her. She never got stuck
in a situation where it was too much for her to bare. She was more than capable
of looking after herself. In some cases, Hunters would call her and ask her for
help whenever they were in a bind and she was proud that other people
recognized her abilities. Although she was merely a woman, she was considered
to be one of the best female Hunters out there and she had her father to thank
for that for raising her the way that he did. Starting at such a young age, he
taught  both her and her brother all that he knew. He brought them up to be
just as smart as he was. They knew all there was to know about what went bump
in the night. Alaine, being the oldest, made sure she set an example. She tried
her best to be her younger brother’s role model. After their father passed
away, they both agreed to honor and respect his dying wish for them to continue
where he left off. They traveled the country, side by side, protecting each
other and fighting the good fight against evil and it went on that way for
years until things took a turn for the worse on one fateful night. Her and her
brother had been out hunting demons and ended up being surrounded by a group of
thirteen of them at an abandoned church in Louisiana. They were all out of holy
water and although they managed to trap three of them, ten others still
remained. With their backs against the wall, Alaine thought they had no choice
but to fight their way out. She was willing to go down swinging as long as she
had her brother there by her side but he had thought otherwise. A friend of
theirs had tagged along on the hunt in case they needed backup. Instead of
asking him to fight, Alaine’s brother ordered him to take her to safety. She
objected, not wanting to leave him on his own but he commanded her to leave.
Knowing she wasn't going to retreat without a fight, he had struck her in the
head with the butt of his gun, knocking her unconscious and with an ache in his
heart, he watched as their friend carried her away. After a couple of hours,
she had finally came to and the first words out of her mouth came in the form
of a question; She asked for her brother. With a solemn look, her friend
regretfully expressed to her that although he fought the best he could, he had
been killed by the demons. At that very moment, she had felt her world come
undone. He continued to speak, relating to her what her brother's last wish,
which was for him to stay with her and protect her but she hadn't heard a
single word he had spoken. All she could think about and feel is pain; the pain
of losing the last living relative she had, the last person in the world that
she truly loved. Her demeanor had changed after that night, and for years she
ruthlessly hunted down whatever creature or malignant force crossed her path.
It wasn't vengeance, but an attempt for her to find a way to cope with her
loss. For a short time, her friend stood by her, watching over her and being
there whenever she needed a hand or a shoulder to cry on but as time had
passed, she grew colder. She harshly pushed him out of her life, no longer
wanting his pity or empathy. She chose to just be alone, it was what she
thought was best for her. She withdrew into herself, blocking out emotions or
thoughts of her past and focused on the job. Whenever she’d get stuck for weeks
without a case, she’d drown herself in whiskey and beer to numb away the pain
and loneliness. She’d think ‘It can only get worse from here,’ but one day she
realized that her pain wasn't as profound as she thought. Dean Winchester, the
warrior, the man whom had stopped the Apocalypse, who had fought and lost and
yet still continued to fight. Just when she felt like giving up, she begins to
hear the stories of a person she once knew and was thrown aback to hear of the
man he had become several years later. The young boy she had fallen for as a
girl was now a rugged, feared and dangerously intimidating Hunter which people
who didn't know him all thought was a force to be reckoned with. She marveled
as his determination, at his striking perseverance to pull through. The man had
literally gone to hell, yet he seemed to be still in one piece psychologically.
He had fought Lucifer and the Archangels, he had destroyed the Leviathans; the
man was a living legend and was admired by some but feared by many. Hearing
about all that he had been through had given her just the amount of strength
she needed to pick herself back up and trudge onwards. She was silently proud
to be able to say that she knew him. Never would she had imagined that the
goofy, bright eyed young boy she had once been friends with would grow up to be
the awe inspiring man that he was, but when she looked at him now she could see
the truth behind all the stories; the man was badly damaged. She knew what pain
looked like from seeing her own reflection in the mirror day by day and he was
experiencing it in the worst ways. He’d try to store it away, keep it all
bottled up in reluctance to deal with his errors and failures. She could tell
that he saw himself as a villain instead of a hero and it pained her. If only
he knew just how she saw him, maybe he’d be willing to see himself through her
eyes. She cared for him a great deal and reuniting once again made her realize
just how lonely she had been for all those years. She had lived without so much
as a few exchange of words with people she came across. She didn't mingle or
try to get to know anyone. She didn't try to make new friends. She refrained
from unnecessary interactions and never stayed in once place for too long to
allow anyone to try to make their way into her life somehow. She had been a
lone wolf for so long that she had completely forgotten what it felt like to
have a genuine conversation with someone. She had forgotten how relaxing it was
to be in the company of someone and to just be herself. It was like a breath of
fresh air and she finally knew what she had been missing  - a true friend.

 After a long five days, Dean finally had returned to the Bunker, sadly, empty
handed. He had went out in search for his brother but to no avail. He met up
with Castiel along the way but their encounter had been brief. He had no new
information about Metatron and Gadreel was still in the wind. Castiel had still
been searching for Sam on his own but was having trouble locating him. He
assured Dean he would continue to look and would contact him with news of his
brother.

 He was tired, moody, and wanted nothing more than to pass out on his bed but
he had a strange feeling something awaited him at the Bunker. His last
conversation with Alaine had seemed kind of weird. He had called her to check
up on her and to let her know he  was on his way back but she had begun to ask
him questions like how long it would take for him to get home, what were his
choice meals and drinks and several other questions that sounded a bit off to
him.

                    ‘Maybe she had been trying to make conversation,’ he
thought to himself, choosing to disregard her sudden interest in him, but when
he stepped into the Bunker and made his way into the library he was utterly
surprised by what he saw before him.

                     “You gotta be friggin’ kidding,” he gaped as he dropped
his duffle onto a nearby chair.

 His eyes fell onto the table that had been set with a warm plate of pan seared
ribeye steak, seasoned mashed potatoes, creamed corn, and a biscuit with a nice
six pack of beer placed to the side.

                      “Am I dead, because this sure must be heaven,” he scoffed
as his mind tried to process what his baffled eyes were looking at.

 Alaine had been standing at the opposite end of the table with a wide grin
spread across her face. “I thought a nice surprise might do you some good.”

 He looked down at the food once more, taking a huge whiff of the mouthwatering
smell that surrounded him before looking back at her. “Did you make all this?”


                     “Aren't you glad I moved in?” she rhetorically asked as
she rounded the table and walked on over to him. “You don’t have to worry about
ever going hungry with me around.”

                    “This is unbelievable,” he chuckled. “I mean  - I never
would've imagined this is what you had planned when askin’ me all those
questions over the phone earlier. You really know to surprise a guy.”

                    “You deserve a little break so why not be able to enjoy a
nice home cooked meal from time to time?”

 He looked down at her. She had been staring up at him with the most contagious
giddy expression on her face and Dean couldn’t help but ridiculously grin in
return.

                   “You sure are something special, Lainey.”

                   “I’ll take that as a ‘thank you,’” she laughed as he patted
her on the shoulder and went on to plop down onto one of the chairs.

 He wasted no time, quickly shedding his jacket and rolling up his sleeves
before picking up his utensils. Stabbing the fork into the steak, he cut
himself a nice thick piece and shoved it into his mouth, slowly chewing to make
sure her savored every spice and seasoning.

                   “Wow,” he muttered through a mouthful of food as he closed
his eyes and relished the taste of it.

 Alaine pulled out a chair and sat across from him. Grabbing up a beer from the
six pack she twisted off the cap and leaned back in her seat. “Is it good?”

                   “Mmhm,” he hummed in content as he cut himself another piece
of steak.

 She sat back and watched as he happily ate. He dug into the mashed potatoes,
took a bite out of the biscuit, ate some of the creamed corn, and with every
taste he got he’d let out what sounded like sexually noises of bliss which
meant to her that he was really enjoying the food.

                   “Where the hell did you learn how to cook like this?” he
asked as he momentarily looked up from his plate.

                   “Over the years I realized that preparing my own meals every
now and then instead of constantly wasting money on take-out was the right
choice; it’s healthier, inexpensive, and taste way better so I decided to teach
myself how to work magic in the kitchen.”

 His brows raised as a smirk tugged at the corners of his lips. “Well, I just
might have to marry you after this because this is just amazing.”

                 “You haven't seen anything yet,” she smiled.

 Dean’s head tilted in curiosity as he set his utensils down. “You got
somethin’ else up your sleeve?”

 Taking a sip from her beer bottle, she pointed over to a round covered baking
pan in the center of the table that he hadn’t noticed until then.

                “What's that?” he asked.

                “Open it up and see.”

 With eagerness, Dean reached for the pan, removing the lid and Alaine watched
as his eyes lit up and a full blown smile swept across his face.

                “No friggin’ way.” He couldn’t believe what his eyes were
seeing. “You baked me a pie?”

 She chuckled as he turned to look at her with a stunned expression on his
face.

                “It's no ordinary pie. I put my blood, sweat and tears into
making that thing perfect.”

 Dean laughed, the genuine sound making her feel a sense of accomplishment.
“Comin’ home to all this after bein’ out on the road for days is any man’s
dream come true. I gotta say, it feels like I’ve won the friggin’ lotto.”

                “Take it as a gesture of gratitude for letting me stay here,”
Alaine said.

                “Hey,” he said with a chuckle as he reached for a beer from the
six pack. “Mi casa es su casa. You can stay for as long as you like.”

 The two spent the rest of the evening drinking and unwinding. After Dean had
finished his meal and enjoyed a delicious slice of cherry pie, he helped Alaine
clean up. He cleared the table, storing away the pie into the fridge and
washing the dishes as she cleared away the rest of the kitchen. Once they were
done, he made his way back into the library and picked up the six pack.

                “What do you say we hang out in my room?” he offered with a
grin. “After we finish up these beers I got a nice bottle of whiskey we can
crack open.”

                “Is this you trying to get me drunk so I’ll sleep with you?”
she asked with a skeptical smile.

 Dean’s face flushed. “No. That's not what – I mean, unless you’d want to.”

                “It’s gonna take way more than just a few drinks to get me to
have sex with you. I admire your effort though,” she laughed as she took the
six pack from his hand. “I’m not your typical girl, but I’ll take you up on
that offer.”

 They made their way through the Bunker towards his room and Alaine was
surprised by his choice of decorations. She looked over the many weapons he had
mounted up on his wall; from pistols to a sawed off shotgun and a rather weird
looking blade which seemed to be made out of a sharp rock. Over on the desk he
had his laptop, a few books and some clothes thrown over the back of the chair.
His bed was neatly made with the corners of the sheets tucked in a single
pillow perfectly placed atop it. For a man, he was surprisingly neat, which was
different from what she knew of him back when they had been young.

                “Well I’ll be damned,” she scoffed as she stepped through the
doorway. “Looks like someone finally learned the meaning of cleanliness.”

 Trailing behind her, Dean entered his room and immediately headed over towards
his bed to plop down onto the mattress. “Come on, I was kid. Cleaning was the
least of my interests, I was more into other things.”

                “Yeah, were girls and guns under your category of ‘other
things?’”she jokingly asked as she went to place the six pack down onto the
nightstand.

 Reaching down, he undid the laces to his boots and kicked them off before
removing his flannel shirt. With only a black tee and his light washed jeans
on, he adjusted himself to sit with his back resting up against the headboard
and his long outstretched legs crossed at the ankles.

               “Sounds about right,” he smiled as he grabbed up a beer and
twisted off the cap. “I was goin’ through it. I mean – puberty? Man, it was the
worst.”

 Grabbing a bottle of her own, Alaine moved over towards the foot of the bed
and sat herself down. She unzipped her boots and slipped them off before
shifting to sit facing Dean with her legs crossed and her beer in her lap.

                “It couldn't have been that bad,” she chuckled.

                “Trust me, it wasn't pleasant. There were some good times like
when the pitch in my voice finally dropped a note but between the whole
breaking out, the B.O and uncontrollable erections, those few years were just
torture.”

 Alaine let out a laugh as she screwed off the cap to her beer. “That sure
explains a lot. If I remember correctly, you were just dying to get laid.”

               “Hormones, man,” he scoffed. “I’m tellin’ you, It was up, it was
down, it was up for no damn reason. I actually went an entire day with a hard
on and was scared because I thought somethin’ was seriously wrong with me.”

               “At least what you went through lasted for a short period of
time. Twenty-two years later and I’m still getting my time of the month, every
month.”

 Dean grimaced as he took a chug from his beer. “Sounds like you must be goin’
through hell.”

              “Although it's been a long time since I’ve been with somebody, I
started taking birth control around my mid twenties to try to ease my
suffering, and I have to say, it’s been working ever since.”

              “Wait,” he spoke up, his brows raising as he adjusted one of his
legs, bending it at the knee and placing his foot flat on the bed to be able to
lean his upper body forward. “When’s the last time you slept around?”

              “Way to word it nicely, Dean,” Alaine scoffed with a shake of her
head.

              “Sorry, didn't mean it that way. How long has it been since your
last hook up?”

 Alaine’s facial expression went blank as she stared back at Dean. “You
wouldn't believe me if I told you.”

              “Try me.”

 She took in a deep breath and sighed. “Nineteen years.”

 Dean’s eyes widened with shock as he looked at her expressionless face.
“You’re kidding, right?” he asked with a chuckle.

              “I'm being absolutely serious,” she deadpanned.

              “There ain't no way you've gone that long without sleeping with
someone,” he spoke. “Nineteen years is a helluva long time, have you at least
allowed a guy to get to third base?”

              “To be honest, no one’s ever gotten past first.”

 Dean’s mouth fell wide open as he looked at her in disbelief. “Not even a
small touch here and there?”

              “I just wasn't interested in any of that,” she responded with a
small shrug. “Unlike most women, I've never really been all that into sex. I
always thought it interfered with me focusing on Hunting so I stayed away from
it all together.”

              “This is the first time I've ever heard anyone say somethin’ like
that. Don't you ever get the urge?”

 Alaine smiled. “The thought’s crossed my mind a few times, but it isn't strong
enough to bend my will into taking my clothes off and spreading my legs.”

              “I gotta say, I admire that,” he grinned as he raised the rim of
the bottle up to his mouth.

              “You do?” she asked.

              “Heck yeah. Not a lot of women can say that, and the fact that
you're one of the few out there that actually respects herself enough to not
let a man like me come along and get into your pants is somethin’ you should
definitely be proud of.”

 Alaine’s eyes widened with shock at his honest response. “And here I thought
you were gonna make fun of me or say some kind of grotesque joke.”

              “Do you really think that lowly of me?” he asked, a hint of
seriousness being audible in his tone.

              “Let's just say my opinion of you is changing,” she replied with
a wide smile.

 With a shrug of his shoulders, Dean extended the arm that held the beer
towards her and motioned for her to make a toast.

             “That's good enough for me. Here's to being celibate; may you
forever hold onto your strength to fight away middle aged pervs.”

 Laughing, Alaine raised her bottle and clinked it against his. “Amen to that."
***** Chapter 5 *****
        It had been three months since Sam's departure and not so much as a
word had been heard from him. His brother attempted to locate him several times
with the help of Castiel but the angel warding sigils that had been carved into
his ribs a few years back made it damn near impossible for him to be found.
while the elder Winchester continued his job as a hunter, the angel assisted
him by proceeding with the search on his own. Dean had begun to realize that
maybe Sam didn't want to be found, that maybe he just needed some space to
himself and that all he could do in the meantime was hope that his brother was
still in one piece.
 
After a long four days out on a case in Wyoming, both he and Alaine were
drained. It had been non-stop hunting since she had moved into the bunker, and
although she wasn't one to complain, she was secretly yearning for a break from
all the chaos. In the time she had been living with Dean, they had somewhat
grown closer to the point that the two were now undoubtedly comfortable around
one another. They'd joke, they'd laugh, they'd argue; it was as if their
friendship kicked back up from where it had been left off all those years ago.
The pair shared an inexplicable bond, a bond that had been born from the moment
both had abnegated their virginity's to one another as young teenagers. Now in
their mid thirties, they've found each other again and it was as if no time had
passed at all.
 
Sitting in a chair in the library in silence, Alaine quietly ate a bowl of
cereal she had poured herself just minutes after coming back in from the hunt.
It was after eight p.m and she was eating breakfast for dinner which was just
how she liked it. She had picked up the bowl in her hands and began to sip from
the leftover milk when Dean casually walked in.
 
         “Hey,” he called out to her as he strode over towards the table.
 Looking up at him through her dark lashes, she raised her brows in question as
he stepped up to her chair.
 Placing one palm flat over the table and the other on the back of her chair,
he cleared his throat as he slightly leaned down to look at her.
         “So. I was thinking - it's been awhile since we've done somethin'’
fun, what do you say we go out?”
 Alaine set her bowl down and leaned back in her seat. “Dean, we just got back;
I'm exhausted.”
         “Oh, come on. We could really use a break, and I'm kind of in the mood
to play some pool.”
         “Can't you just go yourself?” Alaine asked, a hint of protest being
noticeable in her tired voice.
 Dean smirked “I can, but I'd rather you tag along. And besides, you gotta give
me a shot to win back the money I lost in our last game.”
 Alaine stared at him for several long seconds, her brows furrowed slightly in
thought. “Okay. Fine,” she sighed as she tiredly rubbed at her face. “I'll go.”
 Standing upright with a smile, Dean patted her on the shoulder before turning
to walk away. “Awesome, I'll go get the car. Meet me outside in ten.”
Alaine softly grunted as she rose from her seat and stretched her arms above
her head, letting out a small yawn. She was definitely tired, but she couldn't
help but grin mischievously at the thought of beating Dean in another game of
pool; this time around she was going to strip his wallet bare. She decided to
go to her room and quickly change into something different. Taking off her
cotton button down shirt, she slipped on a maroon colored halter top along with
her favorite black leather jacket and let her hair loose from its high ponytail
to flow down her back in soft waves. She gave herself a quick once over in the
small mirror before exiting her room and making her way outside.
Dean had just gotten the Impala out from the garage and was pulling up in front
of the entrance to the bunker when Alaine came through the iron door, letting
it slam shut behind her before skipping up the cement steps and making her way
over towards the car. She yanked the passenger door open and he watched as she
plopped down into the seat with a small huff and settled herself next to him.
          “Did you change?” he asked, his body turning to face her as his eyes
looked her over.
          “I just threw on a different shirt and fixed my hair.”
He stared at her for a moment; his gaze was fixed onto her as he briefly
studied her subtle yet flawless features. He found himself oddly captivated by
the simplicity of her beauty; all the woman had done was slightly alter her
appearance, yet the small change had caught his eye and him staring at her like
a complete idiot. Realizing that he must've had a stupid look on his face, he
abruptly turned his head away to look out ahead of him. “Uh, looks good,” he
murmured in response as he shifted in his seat.
Alaine’s brow arched in curiosity as she noticed his cheeks became slightly
flushed. With a small smile, she moved to sit back as Dean took his foot off
the break and began to drive off. They debated for several minutes as to where
they'd go when they both agreed upon a local dive bar they've visited once
before that was just a couple towns over. When Dean pulled the Impala into the
parking lot, he was surprised to see just how empty it was. From a couple beat
up cars to eight Harley bikes lined up at the front; it was a Friday night and
the place was pretty vacant.
         “Looks like lucks on our side,” Dean spoke up over the blaring rock
music playing in the background as he and Alaine made their way into the
establishment. He quickly noticed an empty pool table in the back left corner
and made a beeline towards it as she went the opposite way and walked over to
the bar to order their drinks. After a couple of minutes and with two beers in
hand, she made her way back over to where Dean was racking up the pool balls
and set one of the bottles down on the corner of the table.
Dusting off his hands, he grabbed up a pool stick from the rack on the wall
behind him and turned to face her. “So, how much are we betting?”
         “So eager to lose, aren't you?” she sarcastically asked as she took a
swig from her beer and placed it down to take the pool stick from him. “Let's
make it fun.”
 A smirk danced across his lips as she stood beside him at the front of the
table.
         “How's this; a hundred and fifty bucks each, winner takes it all,” she
offered with a wide grin.
         “Alright, not bad,” he chuckled. “But how about I up the ante; three
hundred bucks each, winner takes all andif I win, you have to hand wash my car
wearing short shorts and a bikini top while I watch.”
 Alaine’s eyes widened with surprise at his boldness as she let out a scoff.
“You can't be serious.”
         “You said let's make it fun, why not humor me?”
She narrowed her eyes at him as she reached into the front pocket of her black
jeans and pulled out her money, slapping two fifties and two hundred dollar
bills onto the table. “Alright, hot shot. That cockiness of yours just bought
you one helluva ass whopping.”
         “Well why don't you put your money where your mouth is, sweetheart.
Come show me what you got.”
Alaine accepted his challenge. Nudging him aside with her hip she bent over the
table, lining up the tip of the pool stick in her hand with the cue ball as
Dean watched from behind her. She slowly pulled the stick back then jabbed it
forward, the loud crack of the balls knocking into each other as they scattered
all across the table. In one shot, she had knocked in three solids and Dean
 muttered a curse.
         “What the hell was that?” he exasperated as she turned to move to
where the cue ball had landed at the opposite end of the table. She took
another shot; the ball knocked into the right corner of the table, completely
missing the pocket.
She stood upright as she looked upon Dean with a confident smile on her face.
“What's wrong, big boy? Scared you're gonna lose your money?”
         “No way I'm lettin’ you win,” he stated as he positioned himself in
front of the table to take a shot. He managed to knock in four stripes before
it was her turn again. He was feeling good about himself, but his small boost
of confidence was quickly brought down as he watched her make another three
perfect shots; she was now down to two balls. On her next shot, she had missed
the pocket and Dean knew if he didn't get three in a row, the game was hers. To
his luck, he had gotten rid of all his stripes and was now staring down at the
8 ball with determination. He bent over the table and cast her a smirk as he
looked up at her.
         “Left corner,” he called out as he aimed the ball for the pocket.
Pulling back the pool stick, he tapped the cue ball, knocking it into the eight
and watched as it rolled across the table and ricocheted off of the corner,
sweeping past the designated pocket.
Dean cursed again as Alaine rounded the table. She knocked in her last ball
before turning her attention to him.
         “This one's all for you, Dean,” she spoke with a playful wink. “Left
side pocket.”
With a simple stop shot, she had knocked in the eight ball, winning the match.
Dean's eyes widened with shock as she twirled around and triumphantly made her
way over to him. “You gotta be friggin’ kiddin’ me!”
With a chuckle, Alaine stuck out a hand. “I just owned you, time to cough up
the cash.”
          “The hell it is,” he protested. “ We're making this best two out of
three.”
          “Are you being a sore loser?” she smiled, brows raised in amusement
as he scoffed in response.
          “No, that was just a crap match; I wasn't on my A-game.”
 She shook her head in disapprovement. “Just admit defeat, Dean. You can't beat
me.”
          “Yeah? Watch me,” he challenged as he went to set up the table for
another match.
After forty minutes, two games and several beers, Dean was in a bitter mood. He
had managed to lose to Alaine and was now flat broke. With a grim facial
expression, he had reached into his back pocket to pull out his wallet. He
retrieved three hundred dollar bills and with reluctance he handed her over the
money.
          “Who would've thought a tough guy like you would get his ass kicked
by a woman in a game of pool,” Alaine mocked as she snatched the cash right out
of his hand. “It sure is a sad day for Dean Winchester.”
Dean's brows furrowed into a frown. “Yeah, you laugh it up now but I'll make
sure to wipe the floor clean with you next time.”
Chuckling, she dropped her pool stick onto the table. “You keep telling
yourself that,” she called out as she walked off and headed back over towards
the bar to order another round of beers.
He watched her as she walked away, her wide hips swaying side to side as her
dark wavy hair hung down her back like a silky curtain. Chugging the rest of
his beer, he set the bottle down over the pool table as he went to lean back
against it and folded his arms over his chest. The bar hadn't been as packed as
he thought it'd be. A few more people had shown up in the hour they had been
there but the place was still fairly empty. His eyes scanned the entire area;
there were some burly biker men all crowded together at a table towards the
entrance playing a serious game of poker while a small group of college guys
hovered over a nearby pool table talking loudly and laughing at their obscene
jokes as the girls that accompanied them sat idly by, chatting amongst
themselves and occasionally casting sideways glances over at Dean. He had
noticed that one of them, a short, petite blonde had been staring at him for
the past five minutes and when he turned his head to look in her direction
their eyes had locked. The young woman held his piercing gaze, a playful smirk
tugging at the corners of her lips as she flirtatiously twirled her finger
around a long strand of her hair. He could tell she was young, probably no
older than twenty-four, and was fairly attractive. He gave her a quick wave as
he returned her smile with one of his own which caused her friends to giggle
excitedly. One of them nudged her with an elbow while leaning over to whisper
something into the blonde’s ear. He saw the girl turn her head to look at her
friend with an embarrassed expression before stealing a glance at him again.
Several seconds passed before she mustered up the courage to get up from her
seat and with another encouraging nudge from her friend, she began to walk over
to Dean. He watched as the blonde approached him then stopped when she had
gotten close enough for him to hear her over the music without any shouting.
          “Uh - hi,” she stammered as she looked up at him through her thick
eyelashes. “Sorry for approaching you like this. My friends kinda dared me.”
Up close he was able to fully note just how sexy she was. From her tight long
sleeved blouse which revealed the perfect amount of cleavage, to her
dangerously short miniskirt and high heeled leather boots - the chick was a
fantasy come to life.
          “No worries,” Dean replied with a small smile as his eyes raked over
her figure before resting back on her face. Her luminous gunmetal blue eyes
stared up at him, a hint of innocence displayed within them which helped mask
her true lascivious nature as her slightly pouted red stained lips curled
upwards at the corners in the form of a playful smirk. “It's not everyday a
random smokin’ hot chick walks up to me. I'm usually the one who makes a move,”
he went on to finish.
The blonde chuckled as she reached out a hand to place it over Dean's bicep.
“Well I guess today's your lucky day because this is me definitely making a
move on you.”
          “Your friends dared you to do this?” he asked as she went to take a
step closer to him.
          “They noticed me eyeing you and said I didn't have the balls to
approach you. I was sorta nervous because I didn't know if you'd turn me down
or not but they insisted I'd try, so here I am, taking a chance.”
Dean half smirked. “I gotta say, I admire your bravery, but what if I were a
psychopath just waiting for the right moment to haul you away and lock you up
into the back of some rusty old van?”
          “Well, are you a psychopath?” she asked, her voice displaying not
even a single shred of concern.
          “I'm not, but I guess that's exactly what a psychopath would say.”
          “Then it looks like I’ll have to take your word for it.”
 Raising a brow, he tilted his head in curiosity. “You sure are pretty trusting
for the fact that I'm a complete stranger.”
 She batted her eyelashes as a smile played on her lips. “My name’s Diana, now
why not tell me yours so we could properly get acquainted with one another.”
Dean took a brief moment to think; it had been months since the last time he
had sex. He'd been so wrapped up with Hunting and finding his brother that he
never had the proper chance to get himself laid. It had been all work and no
play for him and he was starting to get that insatiable appetite when here came
this random hot woman, practically throwing herself at him. It had somewhat
caught him off guard, but the opportunity had manifested itself right before
him and there was no way he could turn that down. There was only one small
problem that could affect his chance, and that was Alaine. He had come out to
the bar with her and there was no way he could just leave her by herself while
he handled his business - that would be wrong of him. Then again, she was his
good friend. If he were to explain the situation to her, she'd probably
understand and would be okay with it. But there was the issue of her getting
back home. He began to recall a small motel not too far down the road from
where they were; he could grab a room for an hour or two while she waited for
him back at the bar. But, what if something happened while he was gone? Yeah,
she was more than capable of taking care of herself, but what kind of friend
would he be if he left her there while he went to go screw some chick?
Taking enough time to think things through, Dean was just about to speak up
again his eyes briefly looked away from the blonde’s face to glance over at the
front of the establishment.
Alaine had been standing at the bar, waiting for her drinks as a guy came
seemingly out of nowhere and stood behind her. He tapped her on the shoulder
and she had turned around to face him. The guy began to speak but she had shown
clear disinterest in whatever it was he was saying when she turned to look
away. The guy then moved closer to her, his front now mere inches from her
back. He invaded her personal space as he leaned down to whisper something in
her ear which caused her shoulders to visibly tense. She quickly grabbed up the
two beers once the bartender placed them down and went to walk away when the
guy suddenly grabbed onto her upper arm and halted her in mid step.
At that very moment, Dean's primal instincts took over, causing him to
completely forget about the woman in front of him as if she hadn't been there
at all. He abruptly pushed off of the edge of the pool table and brushed past
her as he stalked on over towards the bar, his mind blocking out the sound of
the blonde calling out after him.
Just as the guy had grabbed onto Alaine’s arm and stopped her, her head whirled
around to look at the sly smile on his face.
          “Where you think you're going with that fine ass of yours, baby? I
wasn't done talkin’ to you.”
Every nerve in her body cringed with utter disgust at his words. She tightly
clenched onto one of the bottles in her hand and was about to raise her arm to
swing at the side of his head when from behind her a powerful male voice spoke
up, a voice she knew all too well which stopped her right in her tracks.
          “What do you think you're doin’, pal?”
The guy's head snapped around to look back at whoever had spoken out and saw
that Dean stood right behind him with an intimidating scowl plastered to his
face.
          “I'm minding my damn business which is what you should be doing, now
back off,” the guy spat as he tightened his grip on Alaine’s arm.
 Dean saw Alaine wince in pain as his fingers dug into the muscle of her right
arm. A small threatening smirk dancing across his lips, he turned his head to
look away and chuckled. “Alright, you asked for it.”
 In one swift motion, his hands flew out and was grabbing onto the guy by the
collar of his jacket as he roughly hauled him away from Alaine and pinned him
up against a wall.
          “Listen up, jackass,” Dean bit out as he leaned in and got in his
face. “Unless you want me to tear your ass up ten ways from Sunday, I suggest
you march on out of here while you still can.”
The guy looked at Dean wide-eyed as he raised up his arms in surrender.
“Alright, alright!” he rushed out. “No need for violence. I ain't know the
bitch had a boyfriend, I was just drawn to her. I mean - it ain't everyday you
see a fat ass like hers.”
The muscle in Dean's jaw twitched as he tightened his hold. Pulling him
forward, he slammed the guy harder into the wall, causing his head to snap back
and crack against the wood.
          “You watch how you speak about her,” he threatened, his voice coated
with rage.
By now, the commotion had gained the attention of several patrons nearby,
including the bartender who had reached for a metal bat from underneath the
counter and was readying himself in case a brawl would break out.
          “Dean,” Alaine called out, setting the two beer bottles in her hands
on top of the bar. “Let him go.”
The guy looked from Dean to Alaine then back to Dean. “You heard the little
lady, now get off of me.”
Dean's facial expression hardened. He was reluctant to releasing him without
teaching him a proper lesson but from behind him he could hear her calling out
to him with more urgency.
          “He's not worth it. Let this piece of trash go before we get
ourselves kicked out!”
 With a grunt, Dean loosened his hold, taking a few steps back as the guy
pushed off the wall and began to adjust himself.
          “Is there a problem?” said the burly bartender as he approached with
the bat held firmly in his grasp.
          “No, no problem at all,” Alaine hurriedly spoke out as she stepped up
to Dean. “We were just leaving.” She reached into her pocket, pulling out a
fifty dollar bill and handing it over to the bartender as payment for their
drinks, offering him an apologetic smile before grabbing on to Dean's hand and
leading him away. She began to stride over towards the exit with the angered
Hunter trailing right behind her. Once outside, she walked in the direction
where the Impala had been parked, her fingers still curled tightly around his
calloused hand as she crossed the parking lot. Dean looked down, noting that
she hadn't let him go and had realized, for the first time, just how small and
fragile her hand seemed in comparison to his. But that's not all he ended up
realizing. For some strange reason, seeing her from behind was a revelation. Of
course, he's watched her before - her walking away, the subtle shift of her
hips with every step, the soft waves of her hair flowing in the wind. None of
that was new to him, yet the way she held on to him so firmly, how her soft
hand fit perfectly in his - he couldn't explain it. It's a form of contact
they've never shared. The most they've exchanged were small pat's on the back,
as if they were afraid of what would happen if they were to touch each other in
any other way. Not even a simple hug or a kiss on the cheek; both of them
refrained from doing such things with no real reason as to why. With other
women, any sort of contact, being a gentle caress or a peck on the lips never
really meant much to him as it all was just based off of mutual attraction.
There was something oddly different about this; he couldn't understand it, but
just her simple touch had brought a wave of calm over him, washing away
whatever anger he had previously felt.
When they had reached the car, Alaine released his hand and turned around to
face him, half expecting for him to be fuming but was utterly stunned to see
that the man displayed no signs of rage or frustration. His face was passive,
his shoulders relaxed, which was the complete opposite of how he had been two
minutes ago.
          “Are you okay?” Alaine asked, her voice sounding concerned as she
stared up at him in slight confusion.
          “I'm fine,” he replied, his brows furrowing slightly. “What about
you? Did that asshat hurt you?”
          “I'm good, all the guy did was grab me.”
          “And he probably would've done more than that if I hadn't popped up.”
          Alaine smiled up at him. “You showed up at the right time, you spared
the guy from having his skull busted open by a beer bottle and saved me the
trouble. Thanks for having my back.”
He returned her smile as he reached into his pocket for his keys when,
suddenly, he saw her move in closer to him. Her next actions came as a complete
surprise. Grabbing onto his broad shoulders, she tiptoed, bringing her face
close to his as she leaned in to press a soft chaste kiss to his cheek. The
brief contact of her tender lips on his skin sent a small shock down his spine
which caused him to tense slightly as his nerves began to twitch with the force
of the electrifying current coursing through his body. She had never been that
close to him; it was the first time he was truly able to get a first-hand whiff
of her mesmerizing floral scent and the subtle aroma managed to work it's way
up his nose and dull his senses. He couldn't believe how good she actually
smelled. All the times they'd been sitting in the car together, all the
instances they'd been forced to share a bed - he had noticed her pleasant
fragrance before but never (not even once) had he gotten close enough to her to
be able to experience the effect it was having on him at that very moment. Dean
was rendered immobile, completely and utterly frozen in place.
And what made the situation almost unbearable was the fact that she hadn't
moved away. She remained on her tiptoes, her face mere inches away from his as
she held onto his shoulders. Dean wasn't aware that she had been going through
the same mind numbing experience as him. She had gotten a whiff of his own
manly scent and found herself entranced by it. The man smelled of light sweat
mixed with the remnants of his aquatic body wash and a small hint of musk and
gunpowder. It was a combination which suited him perfectly; it screamed
dominance, which was one of the main characteristics he possessed. The urge to
just nuzzle her face into the crook of his neck rose up from deep within her,
bringing to the surface the feelings she had so desperately fought to repress.
Since she had been a young girl, Alaine had been in love with Dean Winchester.
From the moment she had given herself to him all those years ago, he had been
the only person to ever touch her in any way. Her reason to staying abstinent
after losing her virginity to him nineteen years ago was that she couldn't
fathom the thought of being intimate with another man. She couldn't allow
someone to caress her the way he had that night in the back of his father's
car. That moment she shared with him had meant so much, she couldn't taint the
memory of it with the touch of someone else. For years, she refused to sleep
with anyone because she knew that no one could ever possibly make her feel the
way Dean had. She hadn't cared if she died without having sex again, all that
mattered to her was the loyalty she felt to him even after years of not seeing
each other. She couldn't explain it, and she barely understood it, but she knew
without a doubt that all she wanted was to be his. Little did she know she'd
end up crossing paths with him again, that she'd end up moving in and becoming
roommates as well as Hunting partners, or that she'd be standing in the middle
of that parking lot, breathtakingly close to the man that she had relinquished
her innocence to, the man she had irrevocably fallen for. It had all hit her
like a hard smack to the face; the emotions she had held back for the three
months she had been living with him came rushing to the surface, nearly
suffocating her as she took in a sharp breath and abruptly pulled away. She
quickly turned around and grabbed onto the handle of the Impala, yanking the
passenger door open and dropping down into the leather seat before speaking up.
          “I- I think we should get home, it's getting late,” she half
stammered as she went to seal herself inside of the car.
Dean stood there for a moment before jumping into the Impala, his mind trying
to process just what had actually happened between the two. He knew he hadn't
imagined it, he had felt something he had never felt before and it stunned him.
All she had done was given him a mere peck on the cheek which had placed him in
some sort of a trance and it left him to wonder if she had felt something too.
 
                                                                               
                     
                                                                               
                                   *     *     *     *     *
 
          
         The entire car ride back home had been absolutely silent, the air
surrounding them heavy with the tension of what had transpired in the parking
lot of the bar. Neither one of them had muttered so much as a word to each
other; they had both remained completely quiet. Every now and again, he would
briefly glance over at Alaine from the corner of his eye to see her sitting
back with her hands in her lap as she stared out of the window. When they had
arrived at the Bunker, Dean lead the car into the underground garage. Once he
had stationed it in its designated spot, Alaine wasted no time in clambering
out and heading straight into the living quarters. She made her way inside and
stepped into the kitchen to grab herself a bottled water from the fridge.
Twisting off the cap, she raised the rim of the bottle to her mouth and began
to take long sips, closing her eyes as she relished the cooling sensation it
left behind. She didn't know why, but her insides felt like they were on fire.
Maybe it was because she was nervous, she couldn't say for sure. All she knew
was that her being that close to Dean had definitely impacted her, more than
that one time he had grabbed her in the same spot she was standing in. That had
been months ago, yet she still remembered it as if it was yesterday. The feel
of his strong hand wrapped around her wrist, the way he had pulled her to him
and how close their bodies had been from touching. She had forced herself to
pull away; she knew if she hadn't, Dean would've had his way with her right
then and there, and the last thing she had wanted was to seem ‘easy.’ But who
was she to deny the fact that deep down, she wanted him in every possible way.
She thought it to be hypocritical of her to go and act against what she truly
felt, yet she wasn't capable of revealing her true feelings to Dean. She was
sure he didn't feel the same and concluded it best for her to save herself the
embarrassment of professing her emotions. She would just have to go on to
pretend as if she now didn't desire something more than just a friendship with
him. With a heavy sigh, Alaine had went on to take a final sip from her water
bottle when, suddenly, Dean appeared in the doorway of the kitchen. She hadn't
noticed him, being that her back had been facing in that direction, nor did she
see him begin to approach her slowly. He had cautiously come up behind her and
stopped when they stood just a mere foot apart. He watched as she placed the
small plastic cap onto the bottle and closed it tight. Just as she turned
around to walk away, she was caught by utter surprise to see that he had been
standing so close and as a reflex she jumped back, her eyes going wide with
shock.
          “Christ,” she breathed as her hand flew out and landed over her
heart. “You scared the hell out of me.”
Dean stood before her, completely immobile as he stared down at her.
          “Did you need something?” she asked, looking up into his unreadable
countenance.
His eyes scanned her face, taking in every single flawless detail. From the
perfect shape of her brows, all the way down to the sultry curve of her lips -
he couldn't deny that the woman was absolutely beautiful, nor could he stop
himself from what he was about to do next.
Alaine went to speak out again but was cut off short by Dean's hand flying into
her hair as he cupped the back of her head and brought his lips down to hers to
meet in a fervent kiss. At the sudden impact of their mouths connecting, both
Dean and Alaine simultaneously felt a sharp current of electricity crackle to
life around them which heightened every nerve in their body and made them gasp
softly in surprise. By the sound she made, Dean was now aware that she had felt
exactly what he had been feeling at that very moment, as well as what he felt
back at the parking lot and that made him all the more desperate. With a small
grunt, he screwed his eyes shut and took in a deep breath as he wrapped his
other arm around her and pulled her tightly to him. He tilted his head slightly
as he parted his mouth to allow their lips to overlap one anothers as they
kissed each other with urgency. Alaine dropped the bottle of water she had been
holding and threw her slender arms around his neck as she pressed herself up
against him, her chest now compressed firmly to his as the grip of his hand on
the back of her skull loosened. He let his fingers roam in the silky strands of
her thick hair as he found himself lost in the taste of her lips; It was
enticingly sweet, and absolutely divine. He had never encountered a kiss from a
woman in which rendered him breathless; she had been the first to have such an
effect on him. It made him remember the first time their lips met all those
years ago when they had been just teenagers. The effect had been just the same,
and the realization of that made his sudden desire for her grow tenfold.
Releasing his hold, Dean allowed both of his hands to travel into the inside of
her leather jacket and settled them over the sides of her ribcage as she pulled
his bottom lip into her mouth and gently nibbled. He grabbed on to her, his
fingertips slightly digging into the fabric of her shirt as he pressed his
pelvis tighter against hers. Feeling the rigidness of his erection over the
material of his jeans, Alaine let out another gasp of surprise as his hands
began to slowly travel down the curve of her waistline. They continued its
descent until his palms rested right over her wide hips. He softly traced his
thumbs over the exposed flesh of her defined hip bones, his nails gently
sinking into her skin as he sucked on her lush bottom lip before slipping his
tongue into her mouth. Her body became limp against him, the sound of a
weakened breath escaping her as he tasted her in small circles. His hands now
moved once more to cup her plump backside into his large palms, and just as he
gave it a hard squeeze, Alaine unexpectedly pulled away.
Reluctantly breaking the impassioned kiss, she released her hold, allowing her
hands to unravel from around his neck to rest over his shoulders as she moved
back to get a better look at his flushed face.
          “Dean,” she spoke up softly, her voice sounding out of breath. “What
are you doing?”
          “Kissin’ you,” he stated matter-of-factly as her warm eyes met his.
          “I know, but why?”
Dean's brow arched slightly. “What do you mean ‘why?’” he chuckled. “You think
I'm just doin’ this for the heck of it?”
          “I - I don't know,” she admitted with a shrug as she let her gaze
fall from his face.
He quietly looked upon her for a short moment before removing his hands from
where they rested on her backside. Hooking his index finger underneath her
chin, he lifted her head back up so she could look into his eyes once more.
          “What's the matter?” he gently asked.
 She sighed as she turned her head to look away. “It's nothing.”
          “The hell it is.” Dean turned her face back around and now held her
head firmly in his palms. “Talk to me - what's goin’ on?”
 She was quiet for several long seconds before she spoke up again, this time,
with a hint of seriousness in her voice. “I saw you talking to that blonde back
at the bar. I know you were trying to hook up with her, I mean - with the way
she was dressed, what man in his right mind wouldn’t? I'm not trying to say I
felt jealous, it's just… it kinda feels like I'm being used. You weren't able
to score with her because I was being harassed by some prick. It sorta seems
like you're choosing to settle for me since you came up empty handed, and why
wouldn't you? We're both kind of wasted, we're practically roommates, and being
that we're friends, in the morning none of it would matter because we'd both go
on to act as if it never happened-”
 Dean had cut her off in the middle of her speaking with an unexpected kiss. He
had abruptly leaned in and pressed his mouth to hers, letting his soft lips
linger for a few seconds before pulling back to look down at her with a small
smile.
          “You kind of talk a lot,” he chuckled as she gazed up at him, his
thumbs softly caressing her cheeks as he began to speak in response to what she
had just said. “First things first, it takes more than just a few beers to get
me to feel anything. Not sure if you're aware, but I got a pretty strong
alcohol intake. Now, as for strikin’ out? It happens. That don't mean I'm gonna
try to use you as a rebound because it sounds convenient. Believe me when I
tell you, you are in no way being used. Sure - we live together, but I won't
ever try to make you do anything you don't want to do. As a woman, and a pretty
damn good friend, I respect you. If you were to punch my lights out right now,
I promise you, I wouldn't be mad. I get it - I understand why you're feelin’
like this, and it's my fault. But to tell you the truth, I sure as hell don't
feel sorry for kissin’ you. I wanted to, okay? And I mean I reallywanted to,
not because I was trying to get into your pants, I just couldn't help myself.
Now, if you want to take a swing at me? Go for it. You feel like cussin’ me
out? I'd take it. You want to go ahead and storm off? I won't stop you, but
just to clarify, I don't think any less of you, and I'm hoping you don't think
any less of me either.”
Alaine was kind of surprised by his response. She hadn't expected for him to be
so truthful with her. She thought he'd try to come up with some half assed
excuse as a defense, but in return, all he did was be completely honest with
her and that's something she greatly appreciated. She knew that any other
sleazeball would try to trick her into getting into bed with him, yet Dean did
the complete opposite. That just went to show that the man was definitely
different from the rest.
         “Now, I don't know about you,” Dean started up once more, a smile
tugging at the corners of his lips as he removed his hands from her face to
glance at his watch to check the time. “But I'm thinkin’ of goin’ back out to
get some grub. You in the mood for some Chinese or pizza?”
 Alaine thought for a minute before responding. “Hell, I'd say get both, and
grab a couple of six packs while you're at it too.”
          “I like the way you think,” he chuckled as he went to walk away but
her hand suddenly reached out and caught his, stopping him in mid stride. He
turned back around to look at her and was surprised when she let go to grab
onto his face. Pulling his head down, she leaned up and softly pressed her lips
to his.
          “Before I forget to tell you, I don't think any less of you, Dean,”
she murmured against his mouth, her eyes flickering up to meet his bright gaze.
“You're always showing me there's more to you than what the eye can see.”
With a grin, he wrapped an arm around her back as he returned her kiss by
taking her bottom lip into his mouth and sucking ever so softly before pulling
away to look back down at her with a sensuous look in his eyes. “Just for the
record - ifwe were to ever have sex, trust me, I wouldn't try to act as if it
never happened. I'm pretty damn sure you'd rock my world just like you did the
first time.”
Alaine gaped, her face turning a bright pink as Dean let her go and took a step
back to look down at her rather amusing facial expression. With a playful wink,
he walked off, making his way out of the kitchen and through the Bunker to his
parked car inside of the underground garage.
 
                                             
 
                                                                               
                                         *     *     *     *     *
 
         
 
          “Alaine!” Dean called out when he strolled back in. Walking into the
library, he set down the bags and the pizza box he had been carrying to shed
off his jacket. He had driven out into town to pick up the food and beers she
had suggested he'd get and ended up stopping along the way at a local diner to
grab himself a nice slice of pie before heading back home. The small trip had
took him roughly about thirty to forty minutes, so when Alaine came waltzing in
dressed into a clean white tank top, a pair of black cotton sleep shorts, some
fuzzy slippers and her wet hair draped over her shoulder, he knew she had taken
the time to get cleaned up.
          “Took you long enough,” she spoke up as she approached the table.
Reaching over, she dug through one of the bags in search for the six pack to
take out a beer.
          “I ended up making a quick pit stop,” he replied as he tossed his
jacket over the back of a chair and went on to take off his flannel shirt. “Had
to get myself some pie.”
Alaine glanced over at him as he pulled off his outer shirt and placed it on
top of his jacket. “You and your addiction.”
          “At least it's a healthy one.” Pulling back a chair, Dean plopped
himself down and leaned back, blowing out a long sigh.
She twisted off the cap to a beer bottle and stuck her hand out as an offer for
him to take it. “I wouldn't necessarily say it's healthy. You know that all the
junk you eat could end up killing you, right?”
          “Death by pie,” Dean smiled, taking the beer from her hand and
raising the rim to his lips. “Sounds like the perfect way to go. And besides,
it ain’t like I haven’t been killed before.”
With a dry laugh and a shake of her head, Alaine plopped down onto the seat
adjacent from him as she reached for the bags on top of the table to pull out
the two six packs along with the food. The two of them went on to eat, sharing
their containers of Chinese take out with one another and once they had had
enough of that, they popped open the pizza box and each took a couple of slices
before storing away the leftovers. Once they had cleaned everything up and put
the food in the fridge, they grabbed up both six packs along with their pizza
slices and made their way towards Dean’s bedroom. Alaine pulled out his laptop,
climbing into his bed and opening up the internet browser to stream World War Z
(she had been trying to persuade him into seeing it and was now finally going
to force him to sit down with her and watch it.) They had gotten themselves
comfortable, sitting with their backs propped up against the, headboard as Dean
held the laptop in his lap. The movie had lasted over three hours when it had
been meant to run for only two, and that’s because every now and then he would
pause it and turn to her with questions like ‘why the hell are these zombies so
damn fast?’  or would make statements like ‘I’d cap that son of a bitch in a
split second.’ At the end, when the final credits rolled down the screen, Dean
was able to look at her with a smile and say ‘not bad.’ After that, they had
chosen to watch another movie (one of his liking) and right when it had reached
its midpoint, he started to hear soft snoring coming from beside him. Pausing
the film, he turned to see that Alaine had fallen asleep with her cheek resting
atop of his shoulder and her mouth slightly agape as her chest rose and fell
with every shallow breath. He couldn’t help but note just how perfectly
peaceful she looked and decided upon not waking her. Instead, he powered off
his laptop, and being careful as to not to disturb her, he rose to his feet and
carried it on over to his desk before grabbing up a towel and pulling out a
clean t-shirt along with fresh underwear from his dresser to take with him into
the bathroom. He had took his time showering, making sure he washed away all
the dirt, grime and sweat of the day. Once he had rinsed away all the suds from
his body and completely dried himself, he then changed into the gray tee and
black boxer-briefs he had grabbed from his room. He quickly toweled off his
hair then tossed his dirty clothes into the small laundry basket Alaine had
made him purchase (she had said it was the perfect way to differentiate from
what was clean and what needed to be washed) before padding his way through the
Bunker over to his room. When he stepped back inside, he was surprised to see
that she had remained in the same exact position he had left her in thirty
minutes ago. Her upper body was slightly slouching over from the upright
position it was in, her head tilted to the side as her hands rested limply in
her lap. He glanced over at the clock to see it was well past two A.M; he
couldn't believe she hadn't woken up to shift around which could only mean that
she was in a profound sleep. He momentarily thought about waking her so she
could go back to sleep into her own bed, but as he stared at her further he
realized he couldn't bring himself to do it. He didn't know why, but at that
very moment he craved her presence. Just to have her there brought him some
sort of peace of mind. It was strangely odd that whenever he was around her all
he felt was a warm sense of comfort, as if he could just forget about all the
troubles of the world for a moment and let himself be surrounded by her
illuminating aura. It was a feeling he had grown to appreciate in the short
time they had been living together. In the world of a lonely Hunter, a person
rarely ever had the chance to come across something so unique, yet he had
managed to be lucky enough to find it in her which helped him understand just
how special she truly was and made him treasure her friendship all the more.
Since back when they were just a couple of teenagers, he had known there was
something different about her, something that made her stand out from everyone
else, but it was now as an adult that he was finally going to be able to
comprehend why Alaine Ventura, the woman who he had allowed to take away his
innocence, had such an indescribable effect on him.
 
Reaching behind him, Dean shut the door to his room and quietly made his way
over towards his bed. He sat himself down on the side of the mattress and moved
to stick an arm under Alaine’s back to wrap it around and grab onto her. With
ease, he carefully shifted her body to lay straight across the bed and softly
placed her head atop of his pillow before pulling up the comforter over her and
covering her. He switched off the bedside lamp and settled himself down next to
her, his head resting just mere inches away from hers as he laid flat on his
back and sighed. Tucking himself underneath the covers, he had, in no time,
slipped into a deep state of unconsciousness as Alaine tranquilly slept beside
him.
***** Chapter 6 *****
          Morning had rolled around the following day rather quickly. It had
been no later than nine A.M when Dean slowly stirred awake from his blissful
slumber. He had been  lying on his side, an arm tucked underneath his pillow as
the other rested limply over the mattress. With a deep sigh, he slowly blinked
open his eyes to see that the room was shrouded in darkness. He shifted
slightly, reaching behind him for the bedside lamp and squinted as the room
became flooded with the soft light.  He rubbed at his eyes with the heel of his
hands as he turned to  lie back onto his side. Moving to rest his head on top
of his pillow once more, he was caught by surprise to see that Alaine laid
fairly close to him, so close that he could clearly hear her even breathing as
she slept. She was curled up onto her side with her knees brought up to her
chest and her hands tucked in between her thighs as her wavy hair laid a
disheveled mess all around her head. Dean found himself admiring her subtle
beauty and couldn't help but smile softly; even in her most vulnerable moments
she still managed to stun him with her perfectly unblemished features. He had
noticed by how close she was to him that faint goosebumps covered the skin of
her arms and legs, which only mean that she was probably cold. He remembered
covering her before going to bed which left him to wonder how could have the
sheets ended up getting all bunched up around her ankles. Reaching for them, he
slowly pulled them over her small frame and stopped when his hand hovered over
her midsection. He stared at her intently before allowing his arm to rest on
top of her and with extreme caution, he curled it around her waist and slowly
pulled her closer to him when, suddenly, she began to slightly shift in his
hold, which had only meant that he had accidentally woken her.
Alaine’s eyes slowly fluttered open and with a soft groan she stretched out her
legs and stuck out her arms from underneath the covers to rub at her face as
she let out a yawn. Her vision was somewhat hazy, but she was still able to
make out the figure of a man lying across from her on the mattress, and from
the very light musky scent that radiated off of him she knew right away who it
was.
          “Dean,” she quietly spoke up, her sleep filled eyes shifting to look
up into his face with confusion. “Why are you in my bed?”
          “You're, uh - you're actually in mybed,” he chuckled softly in
response.
She furrowed her brows as she rubbed at her eyes in attempt to bring her vision
into focus. “I am?”
          “You kinda dozed off in the middle of the movie last night. I didn't
want to wake you, so I thought I'd save you the trouble of havin’ to go back to
your room by lettin’ you sleep here.”
She blinked up at him. Her gaze shifted from his face to look down to see that
his body was in pretty close proximity to hers, and that's when she noticed
that the weight she had been feeling on top of her was from his heavy arm being
wrapped around her waist. Her eyes quickly flickered back up as a half-smile
formed on her lips. “Are you... are you cuddling me?”
Dean’s eyes widened at her question, which had sounded more like a statement.
“What? - no,” he quickly blurted out as he unraveled his arm from around her
and pulled away. “You looked cold so I thought-”
          “You thought you'd throw your arm around me and hold me close to try
to keep me warm?” she interjected, her face displaying utter amusement as she
watched a small blush form on his lightly stubbled cheeks.
          “I, uh - I was just…” Dean stammered, awkwardly. “I wasn't cuddling,
alright? I thought my body heat would do you some good.”
A small smirk tugged at the corners of her lips as she stared up at him,
skeptically. “You sure about that?”
          “I wasn't tryin' anything if that's what you're thinkin’.”
          “Didn't say you were,” she smiled.
          “Alright… good.”
Turning to lay on her back, she stretched her limbs and let out another yawn
before she moved to sit upright on the bed. “I’m thinking about going out for a
quick run, want to join me?”
Dean turned his head to look at the clock atop his nightstand. “It’s 9:13.
You’re goin’ now?”
          “This is actually the latest I’ve gone out; my usual time is five A.M
but I overslept today.”
          “I swear, I don’t know how you do it,” Dean chuckled. Moving to lie
on his back, he tucked an arm behind his neck, propping up his head as he
watched her climb out of bed lazily and pad her way across the room over
towards the door.
          “Are you coming?” she asked as she reached for the knob and twisted
it.
Dean thought for a second before answering. “Nah, knock yourself out. I’ll just
stay right here and get some more rest.”
          “Suit yourself,” Alaine called out as she walked out the room. Moving
into the hallway, she headed over to her bedroom to change into her running
gear. She quickly slipped into a plain white t-shirt, black running shorts, a
pair tennis shoes and a gray zip-up hoodie before holding back her long hair
into a secure ponytail. She dug through her duffel bag for her iPod and plugged
her earphones into it before hitting shuffle on her workout playlist and
stuffing it into the pocket of her hoodie. Making her way out of the Bunker and
into the woods, she began to run. With music blasting in her ears and her blood
pumping in her veins, Alaine ran until her body was drenched with sweat. Heart
thundering wildly in her chest, she continued to swerve past trees and hop over
small boulders and broken logs of wood covered in leaves and moss. Half an hour
had gone by before she realized just how far she had gotten from the Bunker.
She doubled back, her previous momentum kicking up as she ran faster than what
she had been before. By the time she got back, twenty minutes had passed and
she was now hyperventilating. Coming to a halt in front of the entrance, she
hunched over and placed her palms flat over her wobbly knees as she tried to
regulate her rapid breathing and the erratic palpitations of her heart. Once
she felt no shortness of breath, she proceeded to make her way back inside.
Descending the iron steps, she immediately headed into the kitchen to find that
Dean was fully awake and cooking up some breakfast. She proceeded to make her
way over towards the fridge to grab herself a well needed bottle of water.
          “How was the run?” Dean spoke up from where he stood at the stove,
his head turning to glance over in her direction. He looked her over, his gaze
lingering over the roundness of her wide ass before it trailed down the length
of her bare, tanned legs.
She yanked open the door to the fridge with one hand as the other rummaged
through its many contents. “It was great,” she responded. “Really got my blood
pumping.”  
His eyes were fixed on her appealing appearance. He watched as she bent over,
the motion causing the hem of her shorts to rise up slightly to reveal the thin
elastic edge of her red lace panties. At the sight of the sultry fabric, Dean
had almost choked on the deep breath he had taken in. Pull it together,he
thought to himself as he turned to look away. Clearing his throat loudly, he
spoke up once more. “I'm, uh - making somethin’ to eat. You in the mood for
some?”
Turning around, Alaine’s eyebrows raised in wonder. “I'm actually surprised you
decided to make breakfast. Either I'm the one who usually makes it, or you just
end up going out to pick something up at the diner. I gotta ask, what's gotten
you in the sudden mood to cook?”
Dean turned his head and cast her one of his famous expressions. “You gonna eat
or not?” 
          “Jeez," she smiled. "Don't get your panties all up in a bunch.” 
At the sound of the word “panties,” the image he had just seen no more than a
few seconds ago had flashed before his eyes once more, causing him to feel a
warm blush creeping its way across his face. God, what the hell is wrong with
me? he thought as he tried to push the image out of his mind. It wasn't like he
had never seen panties before, but… these were her panties, which - oddly
enough - were significantly different from the rest he had ever laid his eyes
upon. But why were they different? It wasn't because of the lace (he had seen
the sort of fabric before) Why was she affecting him in such a way? Why was the
simple thought of her enough to drive him up a wall? All he had done was kiss
her the night before, yet that kiss had done something to him. It changed
something inside of him - but what, and why? Why was he looking at her as if it
was the first time he's ever seen her? He had been living with her for months,
but now was when he was finally noticing the bright, radiant glow that she
possessed. Yeah, she was beautiful - there was no doubt about that in his mind,
but it wasn't like she was the first woman to have ever caught his attention.
Out of all his many conquests, out of all the women he had ever come across,
this one stood out from all the rest. Aside from being hot, in his eyes she was
incredibly smart with an amazing sense of humor, and to top it all off, was a
kick-ass Hunter. Alaine was definitely special. She set herself apart from
other women. She valued herself and didn't need a man in order to know what her
true worth was. She was strong and independent, and that made her all the more
desirable. That kiss he had shared with her meant more to him than any one of
his past encounters and one night stands. For the first time in years, Dean was
actually feeling something far more greater than just a mere physical
attraction. He couldn't understand it, but he was finding himself to be
captivated by the sheer person she genuinely was, and that was something he had
never experienced before. Who she was as a woman was enough to peak his
interests and have him utterly enthralled by what he saw before him.
While he was lost in his own mind, Alaine had shut the fridge and walked over
to the table. She pulled out a chair and settled down into the seat as she
propped up her elbows and watched as Dean resumed to turn over the bacon he had
frying in a small skillet. Leaning forward, she began to surreptitiously admire
the man before her. She let her eyes take in every detail, from the outline of
his shoulder blades underneath the fabric of his t-shirt, to the tight muscles
of his biceps flexing with every movement, all the way down to the curve of his
ass and how the waistline of his flannel pajama bottoms rested exquisitely over
his hips. Dean was the true definition of the phrase “tall, dark and handsome
.” Everything about the him was just too… perfect. She'd think to herself how
could a man this absolutely gorgeous truly exist? In comparison to every other
guy Alaine had the misfortune of crossing paths with, Dean was like a Greek
sculpture come to life. She understood why women were so quick to throw
themselves at him. From head to toe, his appearance screamed “ sex god.” She
couldn't help but wonder to herself what it would feel like to be intimate with
him all over again after nineteen years. The thought of his big, strong hands
caressing her once more and the warm feel of his soft skin pressed against hers
had been enough to transport her mind to a land of blissful paradise. Images
began to circle around her head, images of both of their naked bodies rolling
around in bed, getting all tangled up in the sheets as they'd pull, grab,
scratch and grind against one another. Her imagination began to swirl with the
possible sounds of their lovemaking. The heavy breathing, the deep grunts and
loud moans. Alaine found herself vividly picturing it at all as her repressed
sexual appetite began to pool in her stomach. No man had ever been capable of
making her feel what she was feeling at that moment, and Dean was doing it
without being aware of it at all. She couldn't lie to herself; she wanted him,
not only intimately, but more in a profound emotional way. She'd wanted him
back then when they were kids and she sure as hell wanted him now. She couldn't
understand why, but there was something that held her bound to him. For years,
she couldn't allow anyone to get close to her. She refused to have any sort of
sexual contact with any men because she couldn't stomach the thought of giving
herself up to someone else. She couldn't see herself opening up to anyone in
such a way so she chose to stay away from sex and men, not only for her image
as a respected hunter, but for the sake of her dignity and self worth. For
nineteen long years, she had withheld that decision with such ease, but now she
felt she was on the verge of breaking the pact she had made with herself to
stay abstinent and it was all because the man of her dreams had come back into
her life. She was torn; should she let the detailed stories of Dean's many
conquests affect her, or should she take the time to know him for the man he
truly was before casting any judgement? She didn't want to be unfair and not
give him a chance to show his true self, but she also didn't want to risk
getting taken for advantage. She was aware of the mutual physical attraction
they shared, yet had no clue as to whether or not he remotely felt towards her
what she felt for him. She had been around him day and night for three months.
She had gotten to see small glimpses of the side of him he tried to keep locked
away, the side of him that desperately wanted more of life. She could sense it
in him, he was tired of being a Hunter, he was tired of being alone. For Dean,
pain, suffering, betrayal and death was all he knew, it was all he was
accustomed to. He had been thrown into the cruel life of a Hunter and as a
faithful soldier, he continued to fight. Even when things seemed hopeless or he
couldn't find a way out, he'd scratch and kick until he'd found a solution. He
was devoted to being a Hunter, but that didn't change the fact that he was fed
up, and this was something Alaine understood all too well.
The sound of Dean's voice calling out to her pulled her from her deep thoughts.
He had been standing at the stove, his body facing her as his hand held onto a
spatula.
          “How do you want your eggs?” he asked.
She glanced up at his face. “Um - I think I'm in the mood for an omelette
today. Could you put some extra cheese in it?”
Dean gave her a small smile before turning back around. “You got it.”
She sighed as she screwed off the cap to her water bottle and wrapped her lips
around the rim to take a long drink. Her eyes followed Dean's movements around
the kitchen as he'd shift from his position at the stove to stand before the
fridge as he retrieved the needed ingredients. He grabbed a carton of organic
eggs, along with a plastic container of shredded mozzarella and moved over to
the counter where he had a bowl of what she assumed was pancake mix sitting
atop its surface along with two banana peels. After taking the bacon off the
small skillet and setting it aside on a plate covered with a paper towel, he
cracked three eggs into a smaller bowl and began to whisk them thoroughly.
After setting it to fry in the small skillet, he picked up the bowl with the
pancake mix and with a wooden spoon he scooped up a generous amount and put it
into a another bigger skillet that had already been warming up with a thin
layer of butter at the bottom. She continued to watch him as he prepared her
breakfast and once it had all been done, he neatly placed the food on a
porcelain plate. He brought it over to the table, setting it down in front of
her along with a knife and fork.
Her eyes scanned over the meal as her nose took in the mouthwatering smell that
engulfed her. “Are these banana pancakes?” she asked.
          “Those bad boys right there are my speciality,” Dean smiled as he
moved back over towards the counter.
Grabbing up the utensils, Alaine cut herself a nice big piece and without
hesitation she shoved it into her mouth. After several seconds of chewing and
soft hums of appreciation, she swallowed and cleared her throat. “These are
sogood. What's in them?”
          “Can't have you knowin’ my secret recipe,” he replied as he retrieved
a mug from the cupboard and filled it with some freshly brewed coffee
          “God,” she chuckled. “My pancakes are good, but not this good. I mean
- you even got the buttery crust around the edges done just right.”
Smiling, Dean made his way over towards the table and settled himself down into
the seat adjacent from her, letting out a small sigh sigh as he propped up his
elbows onto the wooden surface. He raised the rim of his mug to his lips and
sipped his coffee all the while watching as Alaine happily ate in front of him.
He noticed the way she'd slowly chew her food as if to savor every bit of it
and wondered if this was something she had always done. There were many small
details about her that caught his attention, like the fact that she was left
handed or the way she'd bite the inside of her cheek whenever she was in deep
thought. His most favorite of all was the sound of the tiny snorts she would
involuntarily let out whenever she'd laugh really hard, which - for some
strange reason - was utterly pleasing to him. He couldn't explain it, but he
truly enjoyed being in her company. In a way, he felt as if he could be himself
around her, as if he could kick back, relax and forget about what was going on
in the rest of the world. It might've seemed selfish, but Dean preferred the
peace he felt by her side than the torment and suffering he was accustomed to
experiencing. His whole life revolved around tragedies, yet in those small
moments he'd let his guard down, nothing else mattered to him but the happiness
he felt being with her. He couldn't quite comprehend it, but it was as if her
cheerful personality brought out a side of him he never knew existed, and that
was something that truly fascinated him.
From across the table, Alaine had looked up from her food to glance over at
Dean who had been staring at her intently. When their eyes met, he felt a tiny
flutter in his chest as her lips curved up into a small smile. Nervously
clearing his throat, he set his mug down as he scratched at the facial hair on
his cheek.
          “So,” he spoke up. “What's the plan for today?”
Alaine pondered for a brief moment. “Don't know. Maybe we should stay in. I
mean - we've been out hunting nonstop, I think we deserve some time off.”
He nodded his head in agreement. “Sounds good to me. Got any ideas on what
you'd like to do?”
          “Well,” she began. “There's this one thing I've always wanted to
try.”
Dean's brows raised in curiosity. “And that is?” he pried.
          “Don't laugh, but I've always wanted to have a spa day.”
          “Spa day?” he asked. “You mean the whole mud baths and massages kind
of stuff?”
          “Don't forget the exfoliating facials, but yes.”
A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth as he leaned forward in his seat. “So
- these massages - are they the real deal? Do I get some hot Asian chick to rub
me in all the right places ‘cause I'd sure as hell love to get me one of those
‘happy endings.’”
An unexpected burst of laughter escaped Alaine as she looked at his rather
amusing facial expression.
          “What’s so funny?”
She smiled. “Dean, I think you're confusing reality with porn again.”
          “Oh, come on,” he whined. “You mean to tell me that's not what really
happens?”
Alaine let out another laugh. “Sorry to burst your imaginative bubble.”
With a shake of his head, he raised the rim of his mug back up to his lips.
“Well, that's disappointing.”
          “Okay, so maybe no spa day for you. Is there anything  you're in the
mood to do?”
He sipped from his coffee once more before answering. “It's been a long time
since I've gone out to the movies. Maybe we could go catch a flick or
somethin’.”
          “I like the idea, but wouldn't you like to do something afterwards?”
          “I don't know.”
Alaine cast him a look and Dean raised a brow in question.
          “Hey,” he said. “If you got any more ideas, I'm all for it.”
With a grin, she leaned forward in her seat and folded her arms over the edge
of the table. “You. Me. Mini Golf.”
          “Mini Golf?” he chuckled. “Are you serious?”
          “Dead serious,” she replied with a smirk. “What could possibly be
more fun than that?”
         He thought for a moment, then smiled. “You're right.” Taking another
long sip from his mug, he then turned in his seat and rose to his feet. He
glanced over at the wall clock to see that the time read 11:08 A.M. “I gotta go
on a quick supply run. I'll go into town and pick up some stuff, I should be
back in like an hour. By then you should be ready to roll out.”
          “What are you getting? she asked as she glanced up into his face.
          “Just the basic necessities like groceries and stuff. You need
anything?”
          “I'll have to double check, I'll call you to let you know.”
Dean gave her a small nod in response. “Alright. I'm gonna go get dressed. You
should start gettin’ ready soon.”
          “Will do,” she grinned as Dean went to walk away, but when she called
out to him, he stopped in his tracks to turn around. “Wait, aren't you going to
eat?”
Dean glanced over at the stove then back at her. “Nah,” he smiled. “I'm good,
you just enjoy the rest of your breakfast. I'll see you later.” With that, he
turned on his heel and waltzed on out of the kitchen.
 
 
                                                                               
                                       
                                                                               
                                    *     *     *     *     *
 
   
          After Dean had left the Bunker, Alaine took the time to get herself
cleaned up. She jumped into the shower to cleanse away all the sweat that
coated her skin. She washed every inch of her body, making sure as to not leave
a single spot untouched. After thirty minutes of vigorous scrubbing, she was
finally assured that she was - in fact - squeaky clean. Turning off the running
water, she then reached for her towel and wrapped it around herself. She
quickly dried off before heading back over towards her bedroom to get dressed.
She pulled out a pair of dark wash jeans from her dresser along with a maroon
colored henley and set them over her bed as she went to slip into her matching
black undergarments. After applying a thin layer of fragrant lotion all over
her bare skin, she then pulled on the rest of her clothing and proceeded to
step into her tan colored riding boots before moving over towards the mirror to
fix her hair. She let it down and squirted a bit of anti frizz cream into the
palm of her hand. She worked the product through her soft, wavy locks, making
sure to gently finger comb it along the way and finished it off by tucking her
hair behind her left ear. Once she felt content with her reflection, she
waltzed over towards her wooden closet to retrieve her navy denim jacket and
slipped her arms through its sleeves. She spent the next five minutes making a
list of the things she needed and sent it to Dean via text message. After
grabbing some cash from the small jewelry box atop her wooden desk and storing
it away into the inner pocket of her jacket along with her cellphone, she
walked out of her room and shut the door behind her.
In town, Dean had been roaming the aisles of the local pharmacy in search of
women's hygiene products. For ten minutes, he'd glance between the screen of
his phone and the many different bottles and containers set on display. Why is
this so hard?he thought to himself as he grabbed up a bottle of body wash to
check its label. For women, there were so many different kinds of fragrances
for lotions and shampoos, it made it damn near impossible for him to know which
one was the correct one. He decided to grab whatever he thought might smell
good and tossed the bottles into the plastic bin he had been carrying as he
moved over towards the checkout lines.
The young man at one of the empty registers waved him over and Dean stepped up
to the counter. He smiled at Dean as he watched him empty out the bin.
          “Women,” the man scoffed. “Delicate creatures aren't they?”
Dean looked up at him and gave him a small grin in return. “Oh, you have no
idea.”
The man began to scan the items as he continued to speak. “I noticed you
struggling over there. I go through the same thing whenever my fiancé sends me
out to shop for her, and if I ever bring back what she didn't ask for, she'd
make me go right back out to get it.”
          “I feel for you man,” Dean said as he placed the last two items over
the counter.
Looking back over at him, the man smiled again. “Well, I don't mind. I mean -
there's nothing I wouldn't do for her. It's all about compromise and sacrifice.
Trust me, it's worth it in the end.”
Dean nodded his head in acknowledgement as he took out his wallet from the back
pocket of his jeans. Retrieving a fifty dollar bill, he handed it over to the
cashier and waited for his change to be returned. He stood there as the man
bagged all of his items and once he had been done, he gave Dean another smile.
          “I'm guessing you got a special lady in your life, take this as a
piece of advice. Always show her how much she means to you. There's nothing
more important than letting your woman know she's special.”
At the sound of those words, he felt the same exact flutter in his chest that
he had felt earlier that morning as an image of Alaine popped into his mind. He
stared at the young man for a moment as he processed what he had said. There
wasn't no special lady in his life, yet Alaine definitely was important to him.
She was his friend and he cared a great deal about her, but what were these
foreign emotions he was feeling? It was something that had him inexplicably
drawn to her. For the life of him, he couldn't understand what was happening.
It was as if every time he now looked at her he'd forget how to breathe. His
palms would began to sweat as a warm, prickling sensation would creep its way
up his spine and across the back of his neck. It was a feeling he had never
quite felt before and it was something that had him downright confounded. Why
was he experiencing these things whenever he laid his eyes on her, and why was
it all catching him off guard?
          “Sir?” the young man spoke up, jolting Dean out from the confines of
his deep thoughts.
Dean flashed him a wry smile as he grabbed up his bags. “Thanks, kid.”
He headed for door and pushed it open as he stepped outside. Crossing the small
parking lot, he made his way over towards the Impala and quickly jumped into
the driver's seat. He placed the bags onto the floor of the car as he stuck his
key into the ignition and started up the engine. Before driving off, he fished
out his cellphone from his jacket pocket and messaged Alaine to let her know he
was on his way back. She responded within seconds with a smiley face and an
“okay.” Dean smiled to himself as he glanced at the message, then tossed the
phone onto the passenger seat as he grabbed onto the steering wheel with one
hand and backed up out of his parking spot before throwing the vehicle into
drive and speeding off down the road.
Back at the Bunker, Alaine had been sitting in the library, surfing the
internet on her laptop. She had been looking up information on where to find a
decent movie theater and came across one that was an hours drive from Lebanon.
She had copied the address into the GPS on her cellphone and powered down her
laptop when the sound of the iron door slamming shut echoed throughout the
Bunker. She turned in her chair just as Dean approached from inside the control
room.
          “So. I - uh, got your stuff,” he spoke up as he made his way over
towards where she sat. “Hope I picked out the right ones.” He extended an arm,
handing her one of the many plastic bags he had been carrying and watched as
she took it from him and opened it up to scan its contents. After several
seconds, she looked up at him with a smile.
          “Not bad. You got exactly what I wanted.”
Feeling a sense of accomplishment, Dean grinned. “And who says men can't shop?”
Pushing her chair back, she rose to her feet. “Don't get ahead of yourself,”
she chuckled. “This was just one attempt. There's still a long way to go before
you can call yourself an expert shopper.” Reaching out a hand, she patted Dean
on the shoulder as she brushed past him. He turned around, watching her as she
walked away.
          “Well, at least I got it right on the first try,” he called out as he
moved to follow her. He made his way into the kitchen to store away the
groceries he had bought and once everything was placed into their designated
places, he then strolled on over towards his bedroom to drop off the bag that
contained his hygiene and hair products. After spending a few minutes putting
everything away, Dean grabbed some extra money from his secret stash and headed
back into the control room to see that Alaine had been standing at the foot of
the staircase waiting for him.
          “You ready to go?” she asked.
          “Yeah, you got any specific destination in mind?”
Taking out her cellphone from her pocket, she waved it in the air as she turned
to ascend the stairs. “Got it right here.”
          “Alright,” he spoke up. “Let's get goin’.”

 
                                                                               
                                     *     *     *     *     *
 
    
          The two had driven out to Grand Island, Nebraska where they chose to
check out the movie theater inside of the city's giant mall. After spending a
few minutes debating on what they would watch, they both agreed upon seeing the
new Superman movie that had been out for over a month. Dean had been somewhat
reluctant to watching it as he felt it wouldn't amount to much, but after two
and half hours of jam-packed action scenes, he walked out of the theater with a
different perspective of the movie. Alaine had laughed when he commented on the
unrealistic appearance of Henry Cavill’s body and responded with stating that
it sounded to her as if he was jealous. Dean had glared at her and assumed a
defensive stance as he folded his arms across his chest.
          “Jealous?” he scoffed. “I look just as good without a shirt, ain't
nothin’ to be jealous about.”
          “I can't really comment on that since I've never actually seen you
shirtless,” she responded with another laugh.
          “Well, you got no idea what you're missin’. That guy's got nothin’ on
me.”
Alaine looked at him, her face reading utter amusement. “Sure,” she said.
“Whatever helps boost your ego.” his face
After spending a couple of minutes going back and forth about who looked
better, Dean chose to settle the discussion with a final statement. “Alright,
tell you what - how about I change your opinion by showing you how much of a
man I really am, and after I'm done provin’ you wrong, you can tell me what you
really think.”
Alaine blinked up at him, her brows raised in astonishment. It took her a
moment to process the meaning behind what he had just said, but when it finally
clicked, she felt her knees go weak. She quickly looked away in attempt to hide
the blush that had crept its way across his face, but it had been too late.
Dean had already noticed her flustered expression and was looking at her with
wonder in his eyes.
          “I think I'll pass,” she spoke. “I prefer you with your clothes on
than off.”
Smiling, he took a step closer to her. “Oh, come on. You mean to tell me you
haven't thought about it?”
Little did Dean know that most of the time, Alaine would vividly picture
herself in bed with him, their naked skin all covered with sweat.
           “No. I haven't,” she lied. “But wouldn't you like it if I did.”
           “There's nothin’ wrong with thinkin’ about it. It's been a long time
since you've - you know. It's only natural for the thought to cross your mind
every now and again.”
           “Well, it doesn't,” she clipped, her tone sounding more harsh than
what she intended it to.
Dean stared at her for a moment with a surprised expression on his face before
he spoke up once more. “Woah, someone sounds like they're in denial.”
Alaine turned her face back around to look at him. “I'm not. I've never been
into stuff like that so I don't need to think about it.”
           “Okay,” he chuckled as he moved to walk past her. “If you say so,
Lainey.”
           “God,” she sighed in frustration. “You're so irritating.”
Shoving his hands into his pockets, he continued to walk towards the direction
of the escalators. “True, but you know you love me anyway.”
Those words couldn't be more true. Yes, she did love him. She loved him for the
good friend that he was to her, and as something so much more emotionally
profound that had begun to settle deep within her heart. She stood there for a
second, watching him as he walked away and couldn't help but feel a twinge of
sadness inside of her. Although part of her hoped that one day he'd see her the
way she saw him, she knew all too well that she would never be more than just a
friend, and the thought of that silently killed her.
After the movie, the two spent some time roaming the many retail stores as they
window shopped. They looked around at all the different styles of clothing and
commented on how much things had changed since their era. Everything was
smaller, and tighter. There had been this one outfit on display on one of the
manikins. Alaine looked it over, noticing how the material of the clothes
barely covered up enough and scrunched up her nose in distaste, which caused
for Dean to crack a ridiculous joke as he let out a hearty laugh. Once they had
gotten tired of looking around, they headed down to the underground parking lot
and hopped into the Impala. They had driven out to a recreational center that
housed an indoor mini golf course, along with a bowling alley, some arcade
games and a go kart track. One would assume the place would be crawling with
kids on account of it being a family center, but it was full of middle aged men
and women. Some hung around in large groups while others were scattered about
in couples. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. Dean and Alaine had
debated for a moment on what they would do first and ended up deciding to hit
the mini golf course as they had originally intended. After a few games, they
jumped right over to the bowling section and played a couple of matches, which
Dean ended up losing and - as always - had declared a rematch. Once they had
enough of that, they made their way into the arcade room. There had been this
one claw machine that had caught her attention; It had been full with stuffed
animals. She wasn't one to like any sort of toys, but her eyes had landed on a
small, furry looking stuffed dog and she knew that she just had to have it. She
popped in a dollar into the machine in hopes of getting it on the first try,
but had lucked out. Dean stood behind her, watching her fail turn after turn.
Once she had run out of singles, she turned away in defeat, but just as she was
about to walk off, he had stepped up to the machine and popped in another
dollar.
           “Dean,” she spoke up. “What are you doing?”
He turned his head to look at her and flashed her a smile. “I'm gettin’ you the
dog.”
Her eyes widened with surprise as she took a step closer. “You seriously don't
have to do-”
           “You want the thing, or not?” he interrupted, his gaze meeting hers.
           “Yeah, but-”
           “So shut up and let me do my thing; I got this.”
He turned back around, putting all of his focus into the machine and Alaine
watched as he expertly aligned the claw with the stuffed dog. Once it had been
hovering directly over it, he pushed the red button and the claw descended. It
grasped onto the toy and she thought it would just slip off as it had several
times before, but to her astonishment, it had hooked onto it, picking it up and
dragging it over towards the opening in the case where it was released. With a
triumphant chuckle, Dean bent down and stuck his hand into the hatch to
retrieve the prize.
           “No freaking way,” she gasped with excitement as he stood upright
and turned to face her. “How in the hell-”
           “It's all about skill,” he smirked. Extending his hand, he held out
the stuffed dog for her to take.
She reached out, grabbing the toy from him and holding it in her grasp. She
stared at the little white dog as her fingers slipped through its fake fur and
smiled softly. “Thanks.”
Dean noticed the change in her tone and looked at her with concern. “Hey, you
alright?”
           “I'm fine,” she spoke up, her eyes still staring at the toy in her
hands. “This just brought back so many memories.”
He didn't want to pry into her mind by asking her what memories she was talking
about, but she had chosen to reveal them to him.
           “As a kid, I always wanted a dog,” she began to relate. “My parents
wouldn't let me because it was just too much of a responsibility for them. As
Hunters, they were already raising two children, they didn't want to add onto
their struggles by adopting a puppy. They told me to forget about it, but I
couldn't. This one day I left our cabin to take a walk down the small path
leading into the woods. My mom had been out on a supply run while my dad was
putting my baby brother to sleep; I saw it as the perfect chance to sneak out.
As I was walking, I could hear the sound of light yelping. I knew it had to be
an animal, but instead of turning back around, I followed the sound. I hadn't
been worrying about the dangers of being in the woods all alone. As I got
closer to it, I was able to see something moving around in the grass. When I
was close enough, I got on my knees and leaned down to get a better look. What
I saw there was this tiny little white puppy - couldn't have been no older than
a month. Just as any kid would do, I picked it up and carried it back home. I
thought about so many different ways I could try to convince my dad to let me
keep it and I was sure it would work, but when I rounded the front porch, I saw
my mother climbing out of her truck. She noticed me right away and her face got
real serious. She came over to me and asked me why I had been outside the cabin
and scolded me on how dangerous it was for a five year old to be alone in the
woods, but when she saw the little furry bundle in my arms, she stopped right
in her tracks. She glanced at the puppy then looked back at me and asked me
where I had gotten it. I told her I found it when I was in the woods, I told
her it had been all alone crying for help. She seemed to not care about any of
that because she went on to yell at me saying that I knew better than to pick
up a stray animal. She shouted at me for not being obedient when I was told I
couldn't have a dog. I started to cry and begged her to let me keep it, but she
refused. She snatched it right out of my hands and demanded I go inside. I did
as I was told and sat myself down on the small rugged couch. My dad had came in
seconds after looking worried and asked me what was wrong. I told him what
happened, and he looked at me with sadness in his eyes. He sat down next to me
and pulled me into his lap. I kept on crying as he rocked me back and forth.
After a while, my mom came storming back in. She glared at me as she walked
past the couch and motioned to my dad for him to follow her. He let me go and I
sat there as they locked themselves inside of their room and started to argue.
Its how I spent most of time - alone while their attention was focused on
either Hunting, arguing or taking care of my brother. The only reason why I
wanted a puppy so bad was because I just couldn't stand being alone.”
Dean had been quite the entire time she spoke. He gazed at her intently, his
face displaying understanding as he knew all too well the feeling of being
alone. Once she had been done, he took a moment's pause, letting out a long
sigh before speaking up.
           “I thought it was just your dad, your little brother and you. I had
no idea your mother had been a Hunter. What happened to her?
She lifted her gaze from the small stuffed animal in her hand to look at Dean
with a somber expression. “She walked out on us… She got up one day and decided
that she couldn't deal with the life that she lived and just packed her bags,
leaving my dad to raise a five year old and a six month old infant all by
himself.”
           “Well, your dad did one helluva job “ he softly smiled. “He raised
the both of you on his own and did the best that he could. Any other man
would’ve tucked tail and ran, but he chose to stick by you and your brother. I
tell you - the guy is admirable.”
           “Was ,” Alaine murmured quietly. “He was admirable.”
Dean's facial expression shifted. “What do you mean ‘was?’”
Alaine turned her gaze to look away from his face so he wouldn't see her now
reddened eyes. “My father's dead.”
           “What?” he asked in disbelief.
           “He's been dead for eight years.”
           “Well, where the hell is your brother?”
Alaine swallowed hard as her chest tightened.  She let out a shaky deep breath
as she closed her eyes in attempt to prevent her tears from falling. “Ethan -
Ethan's gone.”
Dean's eyes now widened with shock. “Gone?” he echoed.
           “He died five years ago,” she brokenly stated. “I've been on my own
since.”
           “I’m so sorry,” he spoke, his hushed voice coated in empathy.
She took a moment to gather herself; she didn't want him to see her cry. She
took in a deep breath and turned her head back around to look up into his face
once more. “It's okay,” she reassured with a wry smile. “I've been alright for
this long, I just have to keep pulling through.”
If Dean had thought she was strong before, this was nothing less than a solid
confirmation that the woman before him was - without a doubt - a warrior just
as he was. She had her own share of tragic losses and had her own burdens to
carry, but none of those things weakened her. Instead, they gave her the
strength she needed to keep on fighting, and that was something Dean could
perfectly relate to.
           “Alaine,” he spoke up, his tone now serious as he looked down at her
with a stern countenance. “If you ever need me for anything, don't you hesitate
to let me know. I don't care if it's the ass crack of dawn - if you wake up and
need someone to talk to or just need the company, you come to me. I understand
what it feels like to lose the people you care about and be stuck livin’ in
this endless cycle of crap. Just know you won't ever be alone ‘cause you got
me. You're the closest thing I got to a friend and I aint givin’ that up, not
by a long shot.”
          Alaine gazed up at him, her eyes displaying utter gratitude at the
sound of his sincere words. She let out a sharp sigh as the corners of her
mouth curved up into a warm smile. “Thank you, Dean.”
He reached out, placing his hand over her shoulder and giving it a firm
reassuring squeeze as he smiled. “So, are you plannin’ on givin’ that thing a
name?”
Alaine glanced down at the toy in her hands and thought for a brief moment
before picking her head back up to look at him again. “How does Thunder sound?”
           “Thunder?” he questioned, brow raised in curiosity.
           “It's what I wanted to name my first dog as a kid. I always used to
love thunderstorms, so I thought Thunder would be a great name since I'd
probably love my dog just as much.”
Dean stared at her briefly before a wide grin came across his freckled face.
“I've never really liked dogs, but Thunder sounds good to me.”

    After the two had spent their day in full enjoyment, they made their way
back home to the Bunker. They hung out in the library for a while, eating their
leftover Chinese and pizza from the night before as Alaine streamed episodes of
Friends from her laptop for both of them to watch. For hours, they sat together
eating, drinking and laughing until midnight rolled around. Realizing it had
gotten late, they decided to turn in for the night and head to bed. After
wishing each other a goodnight, Dean and Alaine made their way over to their
respective rooms and climbed into their own beds. While Alaine had quickly
drifted off to sleep, Dean had been lying in the center on his bed with his arm
tucked underneath his neck as he stared up at the ceiling. His body was
exhausted, but his mind couldn't stop running. His head was full of thoughts of
Alaine, and he didn't know why. He had sighed in frustration as he turned to
lie on his side and closed his eyes in attempt to force himself to sleep, but
to no avail. He couldn't go to bed, no matter how bad he wanted to.
            “What the hell is happenin’ to me?” he murmured quietly to himself.
It was something he didn't understand; the racing feeling in his chest, the
sweaty palms, the inexplicable thoughts - it felt to him as he was on the verge
of going insane. He was going through something he had never experienced before
and had no idea as to how to deal with it, or even stop it. That night, he had
tossed and turned for hours until - finally - he was able to fall asleep. When
his body succumbed to deep slumber, it had already been five A.M. which meant
that the sun was beginning to rise. He knew he wasn't going to get much rest,
but the little he needed would be enough to for him to drift into the land of
dreams where he could escape his thoughts. Little did Dean know that she would
also take residence inside of the deepest parts of his mind, little did he know
that eluding his thoughts of her would be near impossible for the simple fact
that deep down, a big part of him found comfort sheer comfort in them.
***** Chapter 7 *****
         It was a warm, August afternoon. Alaine had been inside the Bunker,
cleaning about as usual while Dean had gone into town to pick up some
groceries. Two long weeks had came and went and in that time frame, things had
changed even more for the two. For Dean, spending so much time in close
proximity to Alaine had begun to drive him out of his mind. With the
realization of the fact that he was unendurably attracted to her, he was
finding himself less capable of being able to control or hide what was
happening to him. This unknown tension had begun to settle itself around them,
forcing them to feel slightly awkward in one another's presence. He would
resort to avoiding Alaine as much as he possibly could, refraining from any
unnecessary interactions. Whether in the kitchen, walking past one another in
the halls, or bumping into each other in the library, each short encounter with
her added onto his growing frustration. They had only been out on two recent
hunts and on both, they had been forced to share a motel room, which had been
utter torture for Dean. She was against letting him sleep on the floor, so he
had no choice but to climb into bed with her. They would sleep on opposite
ends, and although there was an ideal amount of space between them, he couldn't
help but feel the electrifying sensation he would usually experience every
single time he was close enough to smell her mesmerizing floral aroma. Even
being trapped within the confines of his Impala for hours on end with her by
his side was enough to drive him up a wall. They'd do some light chatting and
Dean would struggle to keep himself from looking at her. He'd go on to
surreptitiously admire her every chance he got and it was never for long. He'd
stare for a brief moment before tearing his gaze away and forcing his attention
to be on something else. Looking from the outside, the situation was almost
laughable. Dean's actions reflected those of an awkward high-school teen
whenever coming too close to his “ideal” crush. He'd rarely ever look her in
the eyes, would avoid any sort of physical contact, and on rare occasions would
become breathless whenever she’d stand before him, gazing up into his face with
her captivating golden irises. He had been bold enough to kiss her that night
in the kitchen, but that had been due to the amount of alcohol he had consumed
an hour prior to that moment. He knew what he had done, he knew why he wanted
to do it, but now - he wasn’t sure why he was hesitant to do it again. Dean was
one to take whatever he wanted without a moment’s thought, but when it came to
Alaine, he just couldn’t bring himself to kiss her. If it were any other woman,
he would be more than willing to seduce her into sleeping with him and
completely have his way with her. He’d do unspeakable amount of dirty things
then send her on her merry way as if nothing had happened at all. He was used
to living life in that manner. Casual sex was the best sex; no emotions, no
commitments, no strings attached - just good old nasty fun. He couldn’t deny to
himself that deep down, he desired to be intimate with Alaine, but this kind of
yearning was different. Every so often, he’d think about wrapping her lithe,
pear-shaped body into his strong arms and letting his hands roam over every
subtle curve. He’d vividly visualize himself in the act of intimacy, but
instead of it being rough and quick like he was accustomed to, with her, he’d
envision it being intense and sensual with long, passionate kisses and fervent
strokes of their fingertips over each other’s flushed skin. The graphic images
inside of his mind of her small, naked frame trembling  beneath him was enough
to drive him crazy. Some nights, he would stay up til the crack of dawn,
fighting against his uncontrollable sexual urges as he’d imagine all of the
things he would love to do to her and all the sounds of sheer pleasurable
enjoyment she would make in return. The last time he attempted to get himself
laid, he had quickly backed out. In the midst of him undressing the woman as
she kissed on him, he couldn’t help but think of it being Alaine instead and
had muttered her name in the heat of the moment by sheer accident. Once he
realized what he had done, a sense of discomfort came over him and he hurriedly
retreated to his car to drive back home to the Bunker. Since that incident,
something strange had shifted in him. He no longer felt the need to climb into
bed with whatever broad crossed his path as he once had before. It was as if
whatever attraction he once held towards women had just diminished. Of course,
he would still occasionally flirt, but the desire he had possessed to delve
deep into the confines of a woman’s body was no longer there and that was
something that had him downright astounded. All salacious thoughts would now be
of one person and one person only - Alaine. How could the thought of just one
woman be enough to restrain his voracious cravings for sex? It was a question
that circled his mind often. He would sit, wonder and reflect. He would recall
the moments they shared together as young adults, he would reminisce of the
time they had given themselves up to one another at the age of sixteen, he
would remember how special the moment had been to him and how devastated he had
felt when she had disappeared. He remembered how he tried to force his father
to look for her, and John had always been puzzled as to his son’s devoted
interest in the young girl. For years, Dean had tried to find her, and in spite
of his best efforts, had failed. After deciding to give up the search at the
age of twenty-one, Dean resumed to living his life of a young Hunter and had -
with time - forgotten of her and the memory of the sweet, innocent girl who had
taken his innocence had buried itself deep into his subconscious, along with
whatever emotions he had ever felt towards her. But to his utter surprise, she
had ended up making her way back into his life. He hadn’t expected to ever see
her again, but now that he had her by his side once more, now more than ever
was he reluctant to letting her walk away as she had all those years ago. It
was something he never told her nor did he’d like to admit it to himself, but
she was undoubtedly important to him. He couldn’t understand why, but Alaine
had managed to worm her way into his damaged heart. He cared for her more than
what words could ever express, and just like he would for his brother, he would
put his life on the line for her. He felt it was now his duty to protect her
and to be there for her, given she ever needed his help. Just like him, she was
alone without any family or friends, and through that sad truth, he was able to
connect with her on such an intimate level. He understood her pain and
frustrations, he knew perfectly well the mental torment she had experienced at
the loss of her brother and father. She had nowhere to go, no one to turn to
and Dean couldn’t explain why he just wanted to be there for her. It was this
inexplicable feeling - like a magnet that had him drawn to her. He didn’t know
why, but he was attached in ways he had never been to a person before. Aside
from his brother, his late father and Bobby, there was literally no one else
aside from her that he had such a profound bond with. At first, he had saw her
as just someone from his past, but as time progressed, he saw her as a person
whom he couldn’t see himself living without out, a friend that he couldn’t ever
let go of. After time of living in the Bunker and after spending almost every
waking moment by his side, his feelings only began to intensify. His emotions
had begun to form into something completely different. He went from seeing her
as what someone would call a best friend, to someone he desired to have
something so much more with, and the realization of that terrified him. He
refused to admit what was starting to brew deep inside of him, he was reluctant
to acknowledging the emotions that were beginning to settle into his heart and
mind being that he himself was unsure of what was exactly happening. It was as
if one day he had woken up and no longer saw her as the girl whom he had lost
his virginity to, but as the woman whom he couldn’t help but desire in ways he
never knew were possible.
         It was a quarter to one and Alaine had been working on dusting the
many bookshelves in the library.  She had decided to take up the bothersome
task while Dean had chosen to go out on a supply run into town, leaving her to
enjoy the brief moment of solitude. Although he had been trying his best to
mask it, Alaine had noticed his strange behavior. It was as if her being under
the same roof as him caused him great discomfort and she had a pretty good idea
as to why. It had to be because of their kiss. The morning after had been like
any other, but in the passing days, the atmosphere around them had shifted and
became heavier. She wondered what could have possibly made him feel
uncomfortable around her. Maybe he had picked up on the way she would look at
him, almost drooling at his appearance. Maybe he had realized what she felt for
him and was choosing to let her down easy by reflecting his disinterest in his
actions. She had a strong feeling that he wouldn’t feel for her the same as she
felt for him, and this was nothing more than a confirmation of her fear. She
was being rejected by the man that she loved and there was nothing she could do
about it. In attempt to distract her mind, she went on to solemnly clean in
hopes that that would ease her internal suffering. She had been in the middle
of organizing a shelf of books in alphabetically order when the sudden sound
the iron door coming to a heavy close echoed throughout the Bunker. She had set
down the feather duster onto the empty shelf in front of her and dusted off her
hands as she let out a long sigh. Dean sure was back early, she thought. From
behind her, she could hear the sound of a heavy bag being dropped onto the
table in the operations room and a pair of heavy boots making their way into
the library. She ducked out of the row of bookshelves and walked into the open,
but as she moved to the center of the room, she came to an abrupt halt to see
that the man standing at the entrance way was not Dean at all, but his younger
brother.
            “Sam?” She questioned in disbelief as she stared upon him with wide
eyes.

He stood no more than ten feet away, boring a similar facial expression to see
her there, which was something he hadn’t expected at all. “Alaine?” He spoke,
his voice coated in confusion. “Wh- what are you doing here?”

            “I, uh - I live here now. I had nowhere to go so I kind of moved in
after you left,” she explained.

            “Well, it's… It’s real good to see you again,” he smiled wryly.

Alaine stared at him for a brief moment before speaking up again. “It's been
three months, where in the hell did you disappear off to? You've had Dean
searching all over for you like a madman.”

With a sigh, Sam shoved his large hands into the pockets of his jeans as he
took a step closer. “That’s just like my brother,” he scoffed with a small
smile. “He doesn’t know how to give up.”

Alaine, noticing the distressed look in his eyes, took a few steps closer. “Is
everything alright?”

            “No,” he spoke with a grim tone of voice. “Everything’s not
alright. The world as we know it is on the verge of being decimated.”
   
            “Woah,” she chuckled. “Dean sure wasn’t kidding when he said you
were one for the dramatics.”

            “I’m not over exaggerating,” he stated, sternly. “We’re all in
grave danger.”

Alaine’s facial expression shifted into something more serious. “What are you
talking about?”

He motioned over towards one of the tables. “I think you should sit down for
what I’m about to tell you.”

Alaine did just that, settling herself into a chair as Sam plopped himself down
in the seat adjacent from her. For a small moment, Sam didn't know how to begin
relating to her all the information she needed to know. After taking several
seconds to think, he chose to start from the very beginning. Alaine was aware
of most of the details; they had hunted for the demon that killed their mother,
they had managed to stop the Apocalypse, Dean had died and went to hell, Angels
actually existed and weren't just a myth. Some things that she hadn't known at
all, which had been completely knew to her and caught her by complete surprise
were how both Sam and Dean fought  against the devil himself and locked him
back in his cage, how Sam had been trapped in the same cage and when he
ascended back onto earth, he had come back without his soul. The existence of
Eve and other creatures such as the Leviathans was something she hadn't
expected. For minutes, Sam spoke while Alaine sat there and listened with a
bewildered expression on her face. She hadn't know just how much the brothers
had went through. From beginning to end, their lives were made of tragic losses
and dangerous encounters with evil. She couldn't believe the fact that the two
of them were still standing with their sanity in tact. The last few details Sam
related to her were the existence of both the angel tablet and demon tablet,
how Sam and Dean tried to shut the gates of hell forever, the reason behind the
fall of the angels, and last but not least, how Sam had been possessed by an
Angel named Gadreel who took over his body and killed their good friend Kevin.
He explained to her his reason for leaving the Bunker. He spoke of the things
he had done while being away, how he searched for Gadreel day and night but
never came close to finding him. He told her how in the midst of his searching,
Castiel had found him and related to him of Dean’s obsessive need to locate
him. He told her how he asked Castiel not to tell his brother that he had found
him, to keep it a secret until the time was right. Alaine had asked why he had
chosen to do that and he explained it to her. While on the hunt for Gadreel, he
had come across valuable information pertaining to Metatron. He had teamed up
with Castiel and used the information to the best of their advantage and ended
up uncovering a dangerous secret, a secret that would affect the entire
population of the human race. He didn't want Dean to know until it was time. He
needed to wait until he knew everything there was to know before coming back
home to face his brother. Now that Alaine understood everything - now that she
was up to speed, there was just one question she had, and that question was:
What was the so called secret he had discovered.

            “Okay,” she breathed as she moved to lean back in her seat. She
took a few moments to process all the new information she had received. It had
all hit her like a ton of bricks. There was so much she had been missing out
on, so much that Dean kept from her and she was finally being included, she was
finally becoming a part of it. “I appreciate you bringing me in on all this,”
she spoke up. “Dean was keeping me in the dark, I had no idea all this was
going on.”

            “This calls for a all-hands-on-deck, and what better person to have
on our side than you,” Sam spoke. “You were taught by one of the best Hunters
to have ever lived, we could really use your skill set.”

Alaine smiled softly. “Well, I’m more than happy to help, but I just really
need to know what I'll be getting into first.”

            “Yeah,” Sam nodded. “Of course. Once Dean gets here, I'll go more
into depth about the situation.”

As if on cue, the sound of the Bunkers iron door closing shut in the next room
could be heard, which meant that Dean had arrived from his supply run. Both Sam
and Alaine exchanged a look before rising to their feet and turning to face the
entranceway of the library.

Dean had been carrying several heavy looking plastic bags as he descended the
iron staircase and tread through the operations room. With heavy footsteps, he
made his way over to the library.

            “Hey, you in here?” he called out. “I bought some Thai takeout if
you're hung-“

Dean came to a sudden halt, his eyes focusing on the shocking sight before him.
Alaine had been standing in the center of the room, her arms folded across her
chest as his brother was positioned right next to her, his large frame towering
over her small figure. They both bore a similar countenance as they stared at
him. For a small moment, Dean was frozen in place, but once he realized that
what he was seeing wasn't a figment of his imagination, his facial expression
contorted into anger.

            “Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kick your ass right now,”
he snapped at his brother as he took several steps forward.

            “Dean,” Sam started. “Listen, I know you're mad-“

            “Mad?” He interrupted. “Oh, I ain't mad. I'm freakin’ furious. You
go off and disappear for three months and now all of a sudden you're back?”

            “Alright, I get it. You're pissed off.”

            “Damn right I'm pissed off,” Dean barked. “I looked everywhere for
you-“

            “Well, I didn't want to be found. I needed time for myself.”

Dean scoffed. “Time for yourself? You don't get to quit on me. Whether you like
it or not, we're in this together, come hell or high water.”

            “You're right. Listen - I didn't come here to fight with you okay?
You can be mad at me all you want later, but right now there's something that
you need to know.”

            “Fine,” Dean clipped in response as he made his way over towards
the table to set down the bags he had been carrying. “Let's head over to my
room and we’ll talk.”

            “Actually,” Sam spoke. “Alaine’s a part of this now, she needs to
hear this.”

Dean’s head whirled around to look at his brother. “Excuse me? What the hell do
you mean she's a part of this?”

            “I told her everything. From start to finish, she knows it all.”

            “What?” Dean blurted out.

            “You were keeping me out of the loop,” Alaine spoke up. “I don't
know if it's because you didn't want the help of a woman-“

            “I kept you in the dark for your own safety,” he blared. “I did it
to for your own good.”

            “I don't need protecting. I'm not as fragile as you think I am, I
can take care of myself.”

            “It ain't about you bein’ able to take of yourself, it's about you
gettin’ caught up in problems that aren't yours.”

Alaine scoffed at his response. “Newsflash, Dean, they are my problems. Just
like you, all I care about is saving as many people I can. My job - my duty as
a Hunter is to protect others from what haunts the world in secret. I promised
my father I'd do just that and there's no way in hell you're gonna stop me.”

Dean looked upon her, his face serious but his eyes reflecting understanding.
He didn't want to prevent her from honoring the promise she had made to her
father, all he wanted was to keep her out of harm’s way, all he wanted was to
protect her to the best of his ability.

            “Alaine's more than capable of fending for herself,” Sam spoke up.
“Which is why I decided to bring her in on this. We could use as much help as
we can get.”

            “Help with what?” Dean asked as he turned to face his brother.
       
Sam took a deep breath before speaking up once more. “While I was searching for
Gadreel, I came across something. I wasn't sure what to make out of it, so I
called in Cas-“

Dean furrowed his brow. “I'm sorry – what?”

            “I asked him not to tell you he found me, I needed to lay low
 until the time was right.”

            “You know what?” Dean scoffed in disbelief as he threw up his
hands. “I'm not even gonna say anything, just hurry up and get to what you're
tryin’ to tell us.”

            “As I was saying,” Sam continued. “I called him in. For weeks we
worked together trying to get every piece of information we could, but the
deeper we dug, the more dangerous it got. We were attacked by a swarm of
demons, we couldn't even fight all of them off. We ended up going into hiding
for a while until the coast was clear to kick up the search.”

            “The search for what?” Alaine asked.

            “Metatron,” Sam explained.

            “But why would demons come after you?” Dean questioned. “What do
they gotta do with him?”

Sam swallowed. “This is what I've been meaning to tell you. Metatron is in
league with hell.”

Dean stared at his brother in bewilderment. “You can't be serious, what's he
playin’ at?”

            “Cas and I were able to find out. Metatron’s trying to wipe all
humankind from existence.”

            “He can't do that… Can he?” Alaine spoke with uncertainty coating
her voice.

            “Not alone,” Sam said. “By himself, he doesn't have the power to
pull it off, but with help, he could kill us all in the blink of an eye.”

Dean folded his arms across his chest. “Who's he got on his side? Crowley?”
            
            “I'm not sure. Cas and I weren't able to uncover that important
detail, but we did manage to find out more. We were able to capture a demon. We
got it to talk and it told us everything.”

            “Well?” Dean urged. “You gonna give us the lowdown or not?”

            “Metatron… Metatron’s trying to free lucifer from the cage.”

Both Alaine and Dean stared at Sam in utter and complete shock. The grand
reveal of Metatron's plan was something they hadn't expected at all. For him,
having control over heaven wasn't enough, he wanted to take over the entire
world as well.

            “There's this mythical object called The Spear of Triam. It’s a
weapon forged with the powers of Zeus’ thunderbolt, Poseidon’s trident and
Hades’ pitchfork. It was used by the demigod Perseus to kill Cronus. With the
combined powers of the gods, that spear could be used to do just about
anything. Metatron's already amped up with the Angel tablet, but with the spear
in his possession, he could break lucifer out and bring hell on earth.”

            “So, what you're sayin’ is we gotta find it before he does,” Dean
spoke up.

            “Exactly.”

            “But, how do we find a weapon that has no trace of ever really
existing?” Alaine asked. “I mean, in the movie Wrath of the Titans, it was just
something made up. It doesn't exists in Greek Mythology. You're telling us the
damn thing is actually real?”

Sam nodded. “It's definitely real. There's different versions – different lore.
Most of them speak of Zeus releasing his siblings from Cronus stomach and
joining forces with them and the Cyclopes to take him down. In some, it says
that Zeus locked Cronus away in Tartarus, others say he forgives him and allows
him to become ruler of a distant land. But Cas and I did some digging and found
out that it didn't really go down the way it's told in the lore. There's some
actual truth to what's in that movie.”

            “Son of a bitch,” Dean scoffed. “Just when I was startin’ to enjoy
the peace and quiet around here.”

            “We're gonna have to put all our heads together on this one. Cas is
working on something to help, in the meantime I say we try to busy ourselves
with some cases and a bit of research.”

            “Alright,” Dean sighed in agreement. “I'll comb through the lore to
see if I can find anything that relates to this spear.”

            “I'll help you,” Alaine spoke up.

            “I'm good on my own. Why don't you work with Sam on findin’ us a
case.”

            “Oh,” she murmured, her voice laced with disappointment. “Sounds
good to me.”

Dean nodded his head. “Good. I'm gonna go and put this stuff away.” He reached
for the bags on top of the table, leaving the one with the takeout behind and
making his way out of the library and over towards the kitchen.

With a sigh, Alaine moved over to a chair and plopped down into the seat.
“Looks like we have our work cut out for us, huh?”

            “Looks like it,” Sam smiled. “I'm gonna go grab my stuff from my
car and settle in. We can talk more in a little while.”

With that, Sam left the library, leaving Alaine alone to process all she had
just learned. It was all so much, it was almost overwhelming. She couldn't
believe all of the things she had been unaware of. As a hunter, one would
expect to know all there is to know about the dangers that lurk in the dark,
but she had no idea there was just so much more to what the eye can see, or
what the mind could comprehend. She thought all Angels were meant to protect
all of God’s creations, but whoever this Metatron was, he was definitely a
force to be reckoned with.




            It had been a few hours since Sam’s arrival. Both he and Alaine sat
together in the operations room, working on their respective laptops as they
searched the Internet for a possible case while Dean sat alone in the library
reading through as many books on Greek mythology and Men of Letters files that
he could find within the Bunker. He had managed to read through three books in
four hours and was staring down at the remaining stack of twelve that sat in
front of him on top of the table.

            “Okay,” Dean called out as he shut the book he was reading and
pushed it away. “I'm gonna go stir crazy if I have to sit here for another
minute. Please tell me you guys got somethin’.”

Sam looked up from the screen of his computer and glanced over at his brother
in the other room. “Uh – so far, there’s nothing.”

            “Same here,” Alaine spoke up.

Dean sighed as he leaned back in his seat and tiredly rubbed at his face.
“Okay, it looks like we ain't gonna find anything today. I'm callin’ it a night
on the research.”

            “Yeah, I guess you're right,” Sam agreed.

            “I'm the mood to grab a couple drinks, you two wanna tag along?”

Alaine thought for a moment before answering to Dean’s offer. “I guess I could
use a beer or two. What about you, Sam?”

            “Uh – sure,” he smiled, shutting his laptop.

Rising to his feet, Dean grabbed up his jacket from the back of the chair and
slipped his arms through the sleeves. “Alright, I'll meet you two outside.”

Alaine had quickly ducked into her room to grab her own jacket along with a bit
of cash before joining Sam and Dean in the Impala. She climbed into the
backseat as Sam settled himself next to his brother.

            “So, any ideas on where we’re going?” He asked.

Turning the key in the ignition and starting up the engine, Dean turned to his
brother. “There's this place just twenty minutes out of town I've been wantin’
to check out.”

            “Alright,” Sam responded. “Sounds good to me. Alaine, you're okay
with that?”

            “I don't mind.”

Switching gears, Dean pressed down on the accelerator and drove off into the
night. When they arrived at their designated destination, he rolled the Impala
into the crowded parking lot and settled into a spot near the rear of the
entrance. After climbing out of the car, they made their way into the buzzing
establishment. The place was filled with men and women scattered about, some
crowded over at the bar and some of the pool tables while others sat at the
tables drinking out of their bottles and pints of beer. There was a small stage
in the center of the place with a large projector screen rolled down and a
microphone stand placed in the middle.

            “Looks like it's karaoke night,” Dean spoke up with a smile over
the blaring of the rock music blasting from the overhead speakers as the three
of them made their way over to a table. Sam and Alaine sat themselves down as
Dean remained on his feet.

            “You guys want somethin’?” He asked.

Sam removed his jacket and tossed it over the back of his chair. “Grab us a
couple of beers.”

With a nod, Dean turned on his heel and moved over towards the bar as Sam
turned to Alaine.

            “I gotta ask you something.”

            “Okay, shoot,” she smiled.

Sam leaned over in his chair. “What's it been like living with him?”

Alaine's brows raised in surprise at the sound of his question. “Wow,” she
chuckled. “Um - it's not half bad. I mean, half the time when he's not being a
pain in the ass, his presence is actually tolerable.”

            “I can totally agree with you,” he laughed in response. “He can bit
a bit, overbearing to say the least.”

            “Yeah, that's just how he is,” Alaine smiled and Sam stared at her
with question.

Several minutes had gone by before Dean came back with three beer bottles in
hand. He set down two of them in front of Alaine and Sam and kept the other one
for himself.

            “What do you guys say we grab up a pool table once one frees up?”

            “Looks like someone didn't learn his lesson,” Alaine smirked as she
raised the rim of the bottle up to her lips.

Sam glanced between the both of them and saw his brother’s facial expression
quickly shift.

            “We agreed to never bring that up again.”

            “Bring what up?” Sam asked in curiosity.

Alaine turned to him with a smile. “The fact that he lost all of his money to
me in a match.”

Sam’s eyes lit up in  amusement. “You're kidding,” he chuckled. “Dean never
loses.”

            “That may be true, but it seems like he just can't manage to win
against me.”

            “Yeah, very funny,” he spoke in a sarcastic tone.  “You just laugh
it up, I'll get you back for it.”

            “I'd love to see you try,” Alaine challenged with a grin.

Both Dean and Alaine went on to drink their night away, forcing Sam to take up
the role of the designated driver, which he didn't mind doing since he wasn't
one to always drink a lot. The two of them took it up to make it a contest of
who could consume the most alcohol without passing out while Sam sat by and
watched in horror at how Alaine could chug down an entire bottle of beer in
less than a minute. He was impressed to see that her tolerance for alcohol was
just as high as his brothers, which was something he'd never seen. No man nor
woman has ever come close to beating him in a drinking contest and Alaine was
right on his heels. She had been down six beers while Dean had drunk seven.

            “Alright,” Dean spoke up, slapping his hands down on the table.
“I'm gonna go get us another round. You sure you wanna keep goin’?

Finishing off her beer, she set the empty bottle back down and turned to him
with a slick grin tugging at the corners of her mouth. “No way I'm giving up
now.”

Dean turned to look at his brother who sat towards the far end of the table
with a surprised look on his face. “You hear this, Sammy? She thinks she has me
beat. Tell her – tell her she's got no chance in hell of beatin’ me.”

            “Uh – I don't know, Dean,” Sam laughed. “It looks to me like she's
catching up quick.”

            “She can try all she wants, ain't no woman gonna beat me at what I
do best.”

            “You better watch out, Dean,” Alaine warned with a confident smile.
“I might do just that.”

Dean went to protest against her empty threat when his eyes landed on a sight
before him at the other end of the bar. Looking over Sam’s shoulders, his gaze
came upon a bright eyed, petite redhead who was wearing extremely short denim
shorts with a spaghetti strap top and a pair of cowgirl boots. She was leaning
against a pillar, beer bottle in hand and a salacious grin playing on her lips
all the while her eyes were glued onto Dean. By the looks of it, he could tell
she had been staring at him for a while, and by the way she curled her index
finger, beckoning him over, he knew pretty well just what she wanted.

Sam noticed that his brother was staring intently at something behind him and
decided to turn around in his seat to see what it was. When he whirled his head
around to get a look, he saw that it was a woman – a fairly hot woman at that.
He returned his gaze back to his brothers face and smiled. “Dude, really?”

Dean winked at him as he moved to rise to his feet. “I'll be back.”

Sam sat there and watched as his brother stalked over towards the woman. Some
things never change, he thought to himself. When he turned around to face
Alaine who had been sitting on his left hand side, he saw that she had been
staring over in the direction that Dean had walked off to and bore a serious
facial expression. By the look in her eyes, Sam could figure out why she seemed
to be upset.

            “Alaine?” He spoke up, his tone cautious.

As if being snapped out of a trance, her eyes flashed over to meet his
concerned gaze. “Yeah?” she smiled.
“You alright?”

            “Never better,” she chuckled.

Sam wasn't a mind reader, but he had a pretty good idea of what was circling
around in her head. “You sure? You seem-“

            “I said I'm fine, Sam” she reassured with a sweet grin.

With a curt nod, Sam chose against prying any further. Instead, he decided to
sit back in silence and watch as Alaine resumed to stare over at Dean and the
woman.

He had been standing in front of the redhead, holding a fresh bottle of beer in
his hand while she playfully stroked her fingertips up and down his bicep over
the fabric of his navy colored jacket. Alaine wasn't sure if it was because of
the amount of alcohol she had consumed, but there was this sudden bubbling
jealousy brewing deep within her and she couldn't help but feel the heat of it
spreading throughout her body as she watched him flirt with her. For several
minutes, she watched them. She watched as the woman continued to touch him over
his arm as she repeatedly licked her lips. She watched Dean lean down to
whisper something into her ear which caused for her to blush furiously as her
grip on his bicep visually tightened. With a sharp intake of breath, Alaine
abruptly pushed back her seat as she jumped to her feet. The sudden motion
caught Sam by surprise and he stared up at her with a bewildered expression on
his face.

            “I'll be back,” she spoke as moved to let down her long hair from
its secure ponytail. Slipping the elastic band over her wrist, she ran her
fingers through her hair, tousling it lightly.

            “Where are you going?” Sam asked as he watched her slip out of her
leather jacket and toss it down on a empty chair.

Standing before him in nothing but her tight red tank top and a pair of dark
washed denim jeans, Alaine flashed him a smirk. “To put on a show.”

Sam was confused as to what she meant, but he leaned back in his seat as his
eyes followed her over towards the small stage. She stepped up to the digital
jukebox, popping in a dollar bill and scanned through the different song
selections until coming across one that caught her interest. She picked the
song and made her way up onto the stage. After a few seconds, the beginning
guitar strums of Def Leppard’s Love Bites began to play through the bar as she
positioned herself in front of the mic. Several patrons close by turned their
attention over towards the stage as Alaine began to softly sway to the music.
When the lyrics appeared on the projector screen behind her, she began to sing
them into the mic.

            When you make love, do you look in your mirror?
             Who do you think of?
             Does she look like me?
             Do you tell lies?
             And say that it's forever?
             Do you think twice, or just touch and see?

Several other men and women now watched as her curvaceous hips began to move in
a seductive manner while her slender hands ran up and down the mic stand.

When you're alone, do you let go?
Are you wild and willing, or is it just for show?

Sam sat by, gaping at the sight before him as Alaine continued to entrance her
now growing audience with her sultry movements.

            I don't want to touch you too much baby
             'Cause making love to you might drive me crazy
             I know you think that love is the way you make it
             So I don't want to be there when you decide to break it

Dean’s attention had been focused on the woman in front of him. He had been so
enveloped in the conversation he had been having that he hadn't noticed when a
large group of patrons began to crowd together at the far end of the
establishment. From behind him, a middled aged man spoke up, his voice loud
enough for Dean to hear.

            “Holy hell, I've never heard a girl sing like that.”

Curiosity getting the best of him, Dean glanced over at the man before turning
his head to gaze over in the direction of where the stage was. For a moment, he
tried to adjust his vision to the overhead lights, but when he was finally able
to see clearly, his breath hitched in his throat. His wide eyes landed on the
sight of Alaine standing there, her thick, wide hips softly swaying as her
sultry voice carried through the air. She sang with her eyes closed, as if she
was feeling the music flow through her very veins.

             Love bites, love bleeds, It's bringing me to my knees
             Love lives, love dies, It's no surprise
             Love begs, love, pleads, It's what I need

The muscle in his jaw twitched as he watched her eyes fly open, and as if
knowing that he had been watching her, she locked her gaze onto him.

            When I'm with you are you somewhere else?
             Am I getting through, or do you please yourself?
             When you wake up, will you walk out?
             It can't be love if you throw it about

Dean's heart began to dangerously flutter in his chest, his nerves trembling
with the force of the electrifying current coursing through his body as he held
her smoldering gaze.

Unwrapping her fingers from around the microphone stand, she placed the palms
of her hands flat over her abdomen and began to seductively trail them all over
her rib cage, waist and hips as she delivered the hook and chorus once more.

            I don't wanna touch you too much baby
             'Cause making love to you might drive me crazy
             Love bites, love bleeds, It's bringing me to my knees
             Love lives, love dies, It's no surprise
             Love begs, love, pleads, It's what I need

As the soft guitar solo went on to play through the speakers, Alaine threw her
head back, the thick waves of her hair flowing gently as she continued to run
her hands across her body and rhythmically move her hips around in wide
circles. Dean’s chest tightened as she followed up shortly with singing the
remainder of the lyrics, her eyes never breaking away from his awestruck face.
He hung on to every single word, the sound of her mesmerizing, powerful vocals
washing over him in breathtaking waves. When the song came to a finish, the bar
erupted in a standing ovation of loud cheers and whistles from all of the
patrons. Dean had let out a deep breath he hadn't know he had been holding as
he watched Alaine's face light up with surprise. She bowed in appreciation and
blew a kiss to the crowd before waltzing off the stage and making her way back
over to her table.

Sam had been standing on his feet, a wide grin plastered to his face as Alaine
approached from within the crowd of men and women. He clapped his hands
together and shook his head in amazement.

            “That's was freaking amazing,” he called out to an excited Alaine.
“I'm speechless.”

With a bright smile that matched his, she rounded the side of the table and
stood in front of him. “You really think so?”

Sam looked down at her with wide eyes. “Are you kidding me? You killed it,” he
praised. “I had no idea you could sing like that.”

            “It's one of my many hidden talents.”

            “Well, I gotta say, I'm definitely impressed.”

Alaine chuckled in response as she reached down to grab up her leather jacket
from the seat in front of her. She slipped her slender arms through the sleeves
and flipped her long hair over her shoulders when, suddenly, came a light tap
to her shoulder. She turned around and was completely surprised to see that no
more than three feet away stood a man with the most dazzling, almost
transparent crystal blue eyes she had ever seen. His short, tousled hair was
jet black and his facial features hard and beautifully chiseled. There was a
breathtaking smile tugging at the corners of his thin lips as he stared at her
intently.

            “Sorry for approaching you like this,” he chuckled lightly, the
warm sound causing the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. “I just
couldn't help myself.”

Alaine blushed as she shyly tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Uh –
no worries,” she smiled in response.

            “Wow,” the man breathed. “You're even more stunning up close. Could
you grant me the privilege of knowing your name?”

            “It's Alaine.”

The man repeated her name, the sound of it smoothly rolling off of his tongue
ringing in her ears.

            “It's a pleasure to meet you, my name’s Ian. What do you say you
let me buy you a drink?”

Just as Alaine went to respond, she was cut off by the sight of an intimidating
Dean approaching the man from behind with a stern countenance plastered to his
face. He reached out a large hand and clasped it down onto Ian's shoulder,
causing his head to quickly whirl around.

            “Get your hand off of me, man,” he snapped at Dean.

Alaine watched the muscle in Dean’s jaw twitch as he leaned forward and
tightened his grip.

            “You got five seconds to walk away,” he threatened.

Ian looked back at Dean with a smug smirk on his face. “Or what?”

            “Or I'll shove my foot so far up your ass you'll be tastin’ the
sole of my boot for weeks. It's your choice, douchebag.”

The man nervously glanced back over at Alaine who had been staring at Dean with
wide eyes. By the sound of his voice, he knew Dean’s threat was definitely a
serious one. He decided that it wasn't worth getting his ass kicked, so he
threw up his hands in surrender.

            “Alright,” he spoke. “I'll back off.”

With a small smirk, Dean loosened his grip of Ian's shoulder. “Smart man, now
get the hell out of here.”

Ian roughly brushed off Dean’s hand and scoffed as he straightened himself.
With a shake of his head, he pushed past him and walked away into the crowd of
patrons.

Sam stood idly by, watching as Dean turned to face Alaine with a stony-faced
expression. The tension that had begun to settle around them was almost
tangible, and Sam was able to confirm his prior suspicions.

            “Let's go, we’re goin’ home,” he clipped in a bitter tone.

Alaine now glared at Dean. “Excuse me?” she asked with a scoff as she folded
her arms across her chest.

            “You heard me,” he snapped. “Let's go, now.”

            “I'm not going anywhere.”

Dean stared down at her, brow raised. “Oh, the hell you’re not. So God help me,
I'll throw you over my shoulder and haul your ass out of here.”

            “If you so much as try to touch me I swear I'll kick your teeth
in,” her voice trembled with outrage.

            “Uh – guys,” Sam cautiously spoke up from behind Alaine. “Why don't
we all go home, huh?” Reaching out a hand, he placed it over Alaine's shoulder
and gave it a small squeeze.

            “I'll meet you two in the car,” Dean bit out before turning to walk
away.

Once he was out of earshot distance, Alaine turned around to face Sam with a
bewildered expression.

            “Hey,” he quickly said. “I know he was out of line, just try to
keep the violence to a minimum and talk to him when we get back to the Bunker,
okay?”

With a frustrated sigh, Alaine walked off and headed over towards the door of
the establishment as Sam quietly trailed behind her.



            The drive back to the Bunker was a tense one. The atmosphere
surrounding both Dean and Alaine was so thick, Sam could slice through it with
a knife. They hadn't spoken a word to each other, but he knew that things were
going to get serious once they got home.

When Dean rolled the Impala up to the doors leading to the underground garage,
Alaine wasted no time in waiting for him to shut off the engine before hopping
out of the backseat and hurriedly making her way over towards the main
entrance.

            “Dammit,” Dean grumbled as he reached for the handle to his door.
“Sam, park the car.” He quickly climbed out of the driver's seat, leaving his
brother in the Impala with an exasperated expression on his face.

Inside the Bunker, Alaine had managed to descend the iron staircase and tread
through the operations room on over towards the hallway before the sound of the
iron door opening and closing could be heard in the distance. She had been able
to get as far as the kitchen when from behind her she could hear Dean’s voice
calling out to her.

            “Alaine!”

She chose to ignore it and continued to make her way over towards her room.

Cursing under his breath, Dean jogged through the hallway. “Hey, stop!” he
demanded.

She let out a scoff as she approached the corner and just as she was about to
turn right, she felt a pair of hands fly out and grab onto both her upper arms.
In the blink of an eye, she was being roughly turned around and pinned up
against the wall by Dean as his large frame hovered over her.

            “What's wrong with you?” he snapped as his intense gaze settled
onto her infuriated countenance.
            “Get the hell off of me,” she blared as her hands jutted out and
hit him in the chest. She attempted to use all of her strength to push him
back, but his rigid body barely nudged and inch.
            “What’s your friggin’ problem?” his gravelly voice barked in
response.
Staring at him in astonishment, Alaine shoved at him once more, but as before,
he remained where he stood. Now furious, she began to yell.

            “You’re the problem, Dean. Now let me the fuck go.”
A deep frown creased his brow, his grip on her upper arms tightening further as
his livid stare bore into her face. “No. Not gonna happen.”
Grabbing onto his wrists, Alaine attempted to pry away his hands, but to no
avail. She let out a frustrated scream as she tried to wrench herself from his
grasp.
            “Calm down,” he commanded as he struggled to maintain his hold. She
continued to fight against him, her body twisting and turning in hopeless
efforts of freeing herself and Dean watched as her fervid scowl gradually
shifted into a look of utter distraught.
            “Let go!” She cried in frustration.
            “Dammit, just stop!” he roared, the sight of his eyes witnessing
her emotional unravelling causing his chest to constrict with the force of an
unknown feeling spiraling it’s way to the surface.
Her now glistening irises stared up into his frantic gaze as her body struggled
against him. “You’re a self serving, self centered, egoistic son of a bitch who
thinks of nothing but himself and I hate it - I hate  you. ”
There was this unbearable feeling of desperation that had begun to swarm all
around him, which had him struggling to contain his growing anger. He was
furious - not with her, but with himself. Seeing her up on the stage - the way
she sang, how she moved to the rhythm of the music, how she stared at him as if
she could see right through to his soul, it made him feel things he had never
felt before. Her outstanding performance had ultimately stunned him, leaving
him completely breathless. No woman had ever impacted him in such a way. He was
angry because he knew that the more he’d let himself be around her, the closer
he’d come to surrendering to the emotions that had begun to form deep within
him and he was afraid of what would happen to him if he did. He was afraid of
how it could change him and that fear kept him fighting against it, but the
more he’d fight, the harder it would get. It was nearing the point where he
could no longer control his brief moments of jealousy whenever a man would
compliment her or would try to engage in a conversation. Deep down, Dean
couldn’t deny that a great part of him wanted to make her his, but the other
part of him was reluctant to making any sort of commitment because he knew that
he didn’t have much to offer. He didn’t want to succumb to the pressure of
having to meet the expectations of someone else because he was perfectly aware
of the fact that eventually, he would fail that person, just as he had failed
almost everyone in his entire life and that was a thought he could not face.
Now although he truly felt that way, there was a side of him that saw things
differently, a side of him that despite the fact he’d use his best efforts to
subdue, hopelessly craved for what any other man would desire.
Dean Winchester, the broken warrior, wanted to be loved.  
Before Alaine could attempt to get out the rest of her insults, something
unexpected happened. Dean released his hold of her upper arms and in the blink
of an eye, his firm hands had cupped her face into its calloused palms to hold
her head still as he abruptly leaned in and crashed his lips to hers.
Alaine slightly stumbled back by the force of his unexpected kiss and let out a
soft gasp of surprise as his mouth overlapped hers, causing her legs to
instantly weaken. Letting out a grunt of desperation, he shoved his fingers
through the soft locks of her hair and gripped tightly while his other hand
moved from her face to wrap itself around her waist to pull her taut to him. He
pressed her body firmly against his, groaning as he slipped his tongue past her
lips and hungrily licked into her mouth. The sound of his needy, heavy
breathing elicited a breathless whimper from Alaine as she felt the burning
desire that radiated off of him completely wash over her in electrifying waves.
Feeling her body going limp, she quickly grasped onto the collar of his jacket
as a weakened moan traveled up through her vocal cords and left her in a rush.
As soon as the sultry sound escaped her, Dean’s frame instantly stiffened as a
sudden shock ran down his spine, which forced a breathless groan to work its
way out from deep within his chest. With one effortless motion, his hands moved
to her plump ass and gripped on tightly as he lifted her small frame up in the
air. Alaine reflexively wrapped her legs around his waist as her arms curled
themselves around his neck and moaned once more as she felt his fingers dig
into her backside. She had been so lost in the way that he had been expertly
kissing her that she hadn’t noticed him begin to carry her through the hallway
on over towards her bedroom. She had distantly registered him pushing her door
open with his foot then in less that five seconds, he was climbing into her bed
with her still in his grasp. With her arms and legs wrapped tightly around him,
Dean crawled across the mattress until he was directly in the center of it
before he pinned her body down into the cushion. He leaned back all the while
his lips had still been attached to hers and Alaine untangled her limbs from
around him as he went to briskly shed off his jacket. After tossing it over
towards the foot of the bed, his hands then hooked themselves onto her wide
hips as he settled himself back in between her legs and her fingers curled
around his biceps.
***** Chapter 8 *****
          Time appeared to be at a standstill. It was as if Dean and Alaine’s
surroundings no longer existed, as if everything around them had just faded
away into nothingness, leaving them both to live within the moment of their own
little world where the profound hunger they shared for one another permeated
the atmosphere and enveloped them in a dense fog of pure concupiscence. They
had been kissing for what seemed to be like an eternity and for him it was an
eternity he wished would never come to an end. For weeks, Dean had been
secretly longing for the taste of her enticing mouth on his tongue, he had been
craving so deeply for the feel of her skin underneath his fingertips. He had
been desperately trying to repress the uncontrollable thirst that had been
rapidly growing within him but with every passing moment he became weaker
against her magnetizing charm until eventually  he was no longer able to fight
against himself. Without so much as a second thought, he did something he would
have never seen himself doing; he ultimately gave in. Dean Winchester – the
strong willed man, surrendered to the emotions that had formed inside of him
and caved into his deep-seated desire for her, letting it flow freely.  

On the other hand, Alaine was internally battling with the uncontrollable
fervor of her newly awakened libido that had been raging within her like a
wild, untamable flame. For as long as she could remember, she had refrained
herself from having any sort of sexual encounters with men. She had been
completely abstinent for nineteen long years and never found herself in the
position in which she was currently in. She never allowed for a man to get as
close to her as Dean had. She always kept to herself and refused to let anyone
touch her, let alone even kiss her, yet here she was, lying in the center of
her bed with the man whom had taken her virginity atop of her, kissing her as
if her lips were the very essence he needed in order to live. It was the very
thing she had been dreaming about for weeks on end, and the fact that her
fantasy was beginning to unravel itself right before her was truly frightening.
Alaine couldn’t deny that she had been waiting for this, that she had been
waiting for the moment when Dean would finally swoop her up into his arms and
make passionate, mind-numbing love to her. She had played over the moment in
her mind hundreds of times, how it would go, what it could feel like. She spent
so much of her time visualizing herself in the midst of being intimate with him
that now that the moment was coming to fruition, she was unsure as to whether
or not she truly wanted it to happen. Several doubts began to circle around in
her mind. What if she gave herself to him once more, and this time he just took
it for granted? What if he took what he wanted and just cast her aside as he
would with every other woman he ever came in contact with? What if she allowed
for it to happen and would come to realize afterwards that she had made a
terrible mistake?She was struggling to keep those negative thoughts at bay
because a great part of her wanted nothing more than to experience once more
what she hadn’t felt for years. Deep down she longed to be touched by him, to
be loved by the man of her dreams, but as hard as she tried, she couldn’t find
the will to let herself go. 

While her mind was running, Alaine hadn’t realized that Dean had managed to
take off her jacket and that now she was lying underneath him wearing only her
tank-top and jeans as a protective cover. In the midst of her being caught in
the crossfire of her own thoughts, his mouth had broken away from hers to
softly trace over her jawline. He trailed open mouthed kisses from her cheek,
all the way down to her neck and began to press his lips against the rapid
beating of her pulse. He hadn’t noticed the way her slow breathing had changed
into unsteady intakes of breath as he kissed his way further down her chest. As
his mouth continued its descent, the light stubble of his beard grazed over the
small swell of her breasts as his tongue darted out to lick across her exposed
skin. He softly sunk his teeth into the tender flesh, nibbling ever so lightly
as his hands moved from where they rested right over her hips to glide upwards.
His fingertips trailed across the space where the hem of her tank-top met the
waistline of her jeans before clutching onto the fabric and pushing it upwards
to reveal her flat stomach. In anticipation of his touch, her muscles had
stiffened, but as his warm hands made contact and gripped onto the curves of
her bare waist, Alaine’s fingers quickly unwrapped themselves from around his
biceps and in one panicked action, she pressed her palms firmly to his chest,
locked her elbows and pushed him back. 

          “Stop,” she commanded in a timorous voice.

Alaine could feel his warm breath wash over her face as she turned her head to
stare up into his lust filled eyes. 

He gazed down at her with a puzzled expression, his arms supporting the weight
of his upper body as he hovered over her. “What – why?” 

          “Just stop,” she softly retorted. 

Dean smirked. She was definitely playing hard to get. Moving, he leaned
forward, bringing his face back down to hers to kiss her once more, this time,
sucking her lush bottom lip into his mouth and sweeping his tongue across the
soft flesh. 

Alaine gasped as she felt her body surrender into him yet again. He tilted his
head to gain better access to her mouth, his firm lips dominating hers as he
kissed her more profoundly, but as his hand began to creep its way up the sides
of her waist to trace across her skin, Alaine immediately froze. 

          “No, please don't.”

The sound of her now quavering voice pleading for him to stop was enough to
snap him back into reality. Spiraling down from his blissful high, he abruptly
pulled away. He leaned back onto his heels and rested his hands flat over his
thighs as his concerned gaze settled onto her frightened countenance. 

          “Alaine…”

She quickly closed her legs and crawled backwards across the mattress until her
back was pressed up against the headboard. “Leave.”

Confusion creasing his brow, his facial expression softened. “I'm – I wasn’t
tryin’ to-”  he began to stammer.
    
          “Get out,” she sternly ordered once more as she broke his gaze and
turned to look away. 

Dean’s eyes rested on the side of her face. He silently watched as a single
tear trickled down her cheek and dripped off of her chin. At that very instant,
guilt swarmed all around him and swallowed him up. How could he try to force
himself on her? He thought to himself.  He could tell by the way that her hands
softly trembled in her lap that she was emotionally distressed and he knew
without a doubt that he was the cause of whatever it was she was feeling. He
took in a deep breath as he bowed his head. He blew it. His one shot to be with
her, to finally have her, he blew it all to hell and now she probably resented
him. She had said it loud and clear, she clearly told him she hated him. He
screwed up his only chance and in the process, destroyed their friendship. How
could he be such an idiot? Why did he let himself get carried away? She was
right – his stupid selfish ways of thinking only of what he wanted, of what
could benefit him. She didn't deserve that. She didn’t deserve to be treated as
if she were just an instrument of pleasure to be used for his own thoughtless
desires. She was so much more than that. She was everything he'd ever wanted.
Inside and out, she was his fantasy come to life, his dream come true. She was
the first real woman to ever make him long for something greater than just a
casual hookup, or a mere friendship. She was the one he knew that no matter how
many times  he'd try to lie to himself, no matter how hard he'd try to fight
against it, he just couldn't possibly live without.

The abrupt realization of the one thing Dean had been too blind and reluctant
to acknowledge had now struck him like a hard blow to the face, leaving him
with a sick, empty feeling settling deep into his stomach. He closed his eyes
for a brief moment and exhaled as this unexpected foreign emotion began to
course through his body like a violent current sweeping away everything in its
path. His mind began to rapidly swirl around but he quickly pulled himself out
from his thoughts. When he opened his eyes once more, he glanced up to see that
Alaine had curled up onto her side, her disheveled hair a wild mess all around
her face as she tightly held a pillow to her chest. The sudden urge to stretch
himself across the mattress and wrap her body up into his arms had come over
him, causing for his chest to painfully constrict with the suffocating yearning
to feel her pressed firmly against him. At that very moment he wanted nothing
more than to curl up beside her and nuzzle his face into the crook of her neck,
but deciding against stressing her any further, he scooted his way across the
mattress towards the edge of the bed and planted his feet firmly on the floor.
He reached down towards his left to swoop up his jacket into his grasp before
he quietly rose to his feet and walked off towards the door. He paused as his
hand wrapped around the doorknob. He was hesitant to leave, but he knew that
staying wasn't an option for him. She wanted him gone and he didn’t have a
choice but to do as she wished. Without turning around to take another glance,
Dean yanked open the door. 

          “I'm sorry,” he softly murmured, his gruff voice coated in sincere
regret as he stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind him. 

Alaine laid there in the center of her bed, drowning in a pool of her own
frustrations as she softly cried into her pillow. She was internally screaming
at herself - why would you let him walk away? Deep down, she wanted him. She
needed him beside her, she needed him to fill the empty void in her heart, she
needed for him to love her like she had always dreamed of being loved, but the
truth of the matter was that she was terribly terrified of opening herself up
to him in that way. The fear of the possibility of her wish being just a
creation of her hopeless desire for love was too real for her to take a chance
in letting her emotions run free. The rational side of her strongly believed
she was living a fool’s dream while the other side of her that was crying out
for him was clawing and scratching at the front of her mind. She was perfectly
aware of the risk of exposing her feelings out into the open. She knew that the
moment she decided to do so, there was no turning back, no going back to how
things once were. Alaine wasn't sure if she was ready to take that giant leap,
but the more she thought about it, the more it tore her up inside. She
desperately wanted for him to fall irrevocably in love with her, but she knew
that was something that would never happen.


                                                                         
 
                                                                               
                                     *     *     *     *     *
        
        
         
          Sam had been sitting at the kitchen table, snacking on a green apple
as he surfed the Internet on his laptop when Dean suddenly strolled in.
Glancing up from the screen, his gaze landed on his brother’s distressed
expression and Sam immediately knew something was wrong.

         “Dean,” he cautiously spoke in question. 

His brother completely unacknowledged him as he strode over towards the
cabinets and began to pop them open one by one as he frantically searched
through them. 

Sam turned in his seat. “Dean,” he retorted, this time his tone more stern.
“What's going on?”

Dean continued to ignore him as he tossed bottle of spices around in the
cabinets and pushed aside cans and boxes. Seeing that what he was looking for
wasn't there, he cursed loudly and turned towards the fridge. Yanking the door
open, he bent down slightly and began to search within its contents like a
complete madman. He accidentally knocked a half empty jar of pickles onto the
ground and the glass container shattered at his feet. 

          “Dude,” Sam called out as he rose to his feet. “What the hell are you
doing?”

          “Where's the whiskey?”

Sam raised a brow in confusion. “Whiskey?” he asked. “Wha- you literally just
got back from drinking no more than an hour ago and now you're looking for
whiskey? What's going on with you?” 

Slamming the door to the fridge shut, Dean stood upright and turned to face his
brother. “I screwed up, that's what,” he snapped. 

          “What are you talking about?” Sam exasperated as he watched Dean move
over towards the pantry. 

          “Nothin’,” he clipped in response as he continued his search. “Forget
I said anything.”

Sam scoffed as he moved to approach his brother from behind. “The hell I will.
Dean, you're seriously on edge. What's got you so wound up? Did something
happen between you and Alaine?”

At the sound of her name, his shoulders visibly tensed. He paused for a moment,
his jaw clenching tightly before he swallowed away his frustrations and spoke. 

          “Nothin’ happened,” he bit out. 

Reaching out, Sam grabbed onto his brother’s shoulder and forcibly turned him
around. “Nothing happened?” he echoed. “Well you're sure as hell acting as if
something did. You need to stop. Stop acting like nothing bothers you or
nothing affects you because I can see right through your crap. I've only been
back for a day and I can clearly tell what the issue here is.”

          “Oh, really?” Dean retorted sarcastically. “Why don't you enlighten
me, Sam? If you're so smart, tell me. Tell me what you see.”

          “Look at you,” Sam scoffed again as he shook his head in disbelief.
“You're too damn stupid and prideful to even freaking admit to yourself that
you love her.”

Dean’s jaw twitched as he glared at his brother.

          “You want to know how I know? It's in the way you look at her. I can
see it in your eyes whenever she's around you. You act like you're afraid to
even be alone in the same room with her which seems absolutely ridiculous to
me. I mean, come on. What's there for you to be afraid of? If there’s anyone
who could ever possibly accept you for who you are without so much as a second
thought, it’s her. Alaine’s the only woman who won't run screaming in the other
direction because she's just like us. She knows what we know, does what we do.
Hell, she might even be a better Hunter than you and I both combined. You keep
running from whatever shot of happiness comes your way because you think you
don't deserve it. No one deserves a chance at a normal life more than us-“

          “I ain't meant to live a normal life,” Dean barked. “Do you even see
half of the crap we get ourselves into? There ain't no room for any fairy tail
endings, Sam. I can't give her what she wants and I sure as hell don't deserve
someone like her.”

          “Would you listen to yourself?” Sam spoke in an aggravated tone, his
voice now rising a couple of octaves. “You're putting up excuses.”

Dean’s brow furrowed as he took a step closer towards his brother. “Excuses?
Come on, Sam. Take a good, hard look at me. I can't sit and play house and make
plans for a future together when I don't even know if the next day will be my
last. It's pointless. I just have to accept the truth that I'm just not cut out
for the apple pie life. It never worked out with Lisa, and it ain't gonna work
out now or ever.” 

          “You're right,” Sam said. “It is pointless – trying to talk sense
into you, trying to have you open your eyes to what's in front of you is
absolutely pointless. Why do you think you and Lisa never lasted? It’s cause
you couldn't let go of the Hunter’s life. You didn't want to risk putting her
and Ben’s lives in danger so you walked out and even after she came back into
your life, you let her go. I get it, okay? You don't want to admit it, but
you're afraid and that's okay-“

          “I'm not afraid,” Dean interrupted.

          “Yes, you are. I can see right through you, man. You're afraid that
if you let it happen, somewhere down the road you’re gonna end up wishing you
didn't. You think that someone's gonna end up getting hurt and you'd rather
avoid that.”

          “That's exactly what I think,” he responded to his younger brother.
“We're warriors and we fight day in and day out. What happens when a soldier
doesn't come home and leaves a family behind? I can't have that kind of weight
on my shoulders. I got too much on my plate to be worryin’ about what might
happen when I'm gone.”

Sam shook his head once more. “Dean, just stop. Stop and think. Do you remember
when you told me you wanted me to get out and find a life of my own? How could
you not want better for yourself? I'm gonna stand here and tell you the same
thing you told me. I want you to get out and find your own perfect ending. Find
yourself a slice of happiness and don't you dare let it go. You deserve to be
loved. She deserves to be loved by someone like you and I can guess that's
exactly what she's been wishing for cause I can see it in her eyes every single
time she looks at you. Tonight at the bar, she was so consumed with jealousy
and disappointment because she saw you walk off to talk to that random chick. I
know what it looks like when you want something you can't have, and that's
exactly how she feels. She can't help but want a man she believes doesn't want
her back, and by you doing stuff like what you did tonight, you'll only push
her farther away. Now make a choice for her and for yourself, either you man up
or just let her go, but don't keep toying with her. Don't sit here and lead her
on into believing you want the same as her when in reality you're too much of
wuss to tell her the truth. For once, stop acting like it’s all about you and
take her damn feelings into consideration.”

Dean stared at his brother, his jaw clenched and expression hard. He couldn’t
find the words to speak in response to what Sam had just bluntly stated in his
face because he knew that he was absolutely right. He was too caught up with
what he thought was best that he never bothered to think about what was
actually right. He let himself become selfishly wrapped up in his own doubts
and insecurities that he had completely cast away what Alaine could have been
possibly feeling because to him it hadn't mattered. How could he be so
careless, so thoughtless. 

          “I'm going to bed,” Sam spoke up abruptly as he turned to walk away.
“If you still want that bottle of whiskey, I saw it in the library.

Dean watched as his brother moved over towards the table to collect his laptop
and half eaten apple before making his way towards the open doorway and walking
out. Once Sam had left and he was standing in the center of the kitchen all
alone, he bowed his head and cupped his face into his palm. He let out a long,
exhausted sigh as he squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose;
his mind had been running all day and it was now that he was beginning to
experience the effects of an oncoming migraine. He softly groaned in annoyance
as he briskly ran his fingers through the short length of his hair and turned
to look at the mess of the broken pickle jar on the floor. Great. Now I have to
clean this up, he thought to himself as he moved over towards the sink to grab
up a dishrag to collect the large shards of glass scattered about before
sweeping away the rest into a dustpan and dumping it away into the garbage bin.
Once he mopped up the pickle juice and the floor was once again spotless, he
left the kitchen and made his way into the library. To his surprise, the
whiskey bottle had been resting atop one of the tables just as Sam had said and
with a small huff, he plopped himself down into a chair. He grabbed up the half
empty bottle and propped his feet up on the table as he leaned back in his
seat. He took a quick glance at his watch to see that the time read 1:47 A.M. 

          “Here's to a long night,” he murmured to himself with a heavy sigh as
he unscrewed the cap to the bottle and raised the rim to his lips to take a
long swig.


                                                                     
 
                                                                               
                                       *     *     *     *     *
        
         
          
 
          At the crack of dawn the following morning, Alaine was tiredly
crawling out of bed. It was no later than five A.M when her alarm had gone off.
She lazily padded around her room, gathering her running gear and slipping into
it before she quietly stepped out of her bedroom and made her way through the
Bunker and out into the small backwoods to start her routine morning run. With
her music blaring through her earphones, she left herself get lost in nature as
she exercised away her frustrations. She had ran for an extra hour, making
three more laps around the woods before she decided to head back inside. After
showering and changing out of her sweaty clothes into a pair of jeans and a
plain black cotton v-neck, she went on to do a bit of light cleaning around her
room. She stored her fresh laundry, made her bed and stuffed away her knives
and handguns that she had scattered over the top of her desk into her weapons
bag. Once she had finished, she stood in the center of her room, placed her
hands on her hips and threw her head back as she let out an exhausted sigh. She
had spent the majority of the night before staring up at the ceiling and
reflecting back on everything that has ever happened between her and Dean since
she had moved in. From every flirtatious smile and lustful stares to all the
moments in which their bodies came painfully close to one another. Alaine
thought of all of those things, especially the two separate times in which
their lips had met in a very heated kiss. She couldn’t understand just exactly
what was going on between them. A part of her believed that he was just using
her for his own satisfaction, but there was a side of her that desperately
hoped for it to be the exact opposite. She hoped that deep down, he felt the
same way she felt, that he wanted her just as she wanted him, that he felt for
her just as she felt for him. It was that bit of hope that had her clinging
onto the idea that maybe, just maybe there was a slight chance that Dean loved
her back. When she thought about it, how he’d become aggressively
overprotective when it came to her safety, how he’d come to her rescue whenever
she needed defending or a helping hand, how he’d let his walls down whenever
they were alone in private and would show her his hidden side that reflected
his true inner self, it made her realize all the more just how much she truly
cared for the man. Most people knew him to be impulsive, intimidating and ill-
tempered but to her, he was the complete opposite. Dean was funny,
compassionate, goodhearted and beautifully flawed and the fact that she was
able to see him for who he really was, she considered herself to be immensely
lucky and couldn't help but wonder why he had let himself become so vulnerable
in front of her. He had dropped his whole warrior exterior and gave her a
glimpse of what lied underneath all the scars – a man who wanted nothing more
than to be understood and who better to see things through his eyes than her.
She knew the suffering of living a solitary life, the never ending torment of
having nowhere to turn to when being backed into a corner. She was all too
familiar with the pain of losing everyone she's  ever loved and the weight of
their deaths weighing down on her soul as well as the bitter guilt and regret
that would keep her up at night. She wanted badly to be there for him, to be
the moral support she knew he needed, to be his shoulder to cry on, to be the
hand that would hold him steady. She wanted to be the light to his darkness and
envelope him in a shroud of everlasting love.

A sudden sharp knock had come to her door which had jolted her from her
thoughts and caused her to jump in surprise. 

          “Hey,” Sam’s voice called out from the other side. “You awake?”

          “Uh, yeah,” Alaine replied as her door creaked open and his large
frame peaked into the room.

Sam shot her a warm smile. “Morning. Just wanted to make sure you were up.
There's breakfast and I also found us a case.”

          “Well, that was quick,” she chuckled as she ran a slender hand
through the soft, wavy locks of her hair. “What did you find?”

          “Join me in the kitchen and I'll tell you.”

She sighed softly. “Right. I'll be right there.”

Alaine finished dressing herself by slipping on her combat boots before she
steadily made her way through the Bunker on over towards the kitchen. When she
stepped through the doorway, Sam had been approaching the table with a plate of
waffles, eggs and bacon and had set it down in the center before settling back
into his seat. When he plopped back down into his spot and cleared the view,
Dean’s tired eyes glanced up from his mug to look over Sam's shoulder. His gaze
landed on Alaine and his heart immediately dropped down into his stomach as
every nerve in his body went rigid. She stared right back at him and for a
brief moment, she found herself unable to move as his luminous chartreuse
irises bore right into hers, leaving her damn near breathless. They reflected
such an intense amount of emotion, which had caught her by complete surprise
and had her asking herself what could possibly be making him look at her in
that way. 

As if to her rescue, Sam spoke up, breaking the deafening silence around them.
He turned around in his seat to glance over at her with a smile. “You gonna
stand there or are you gonna come and eat?”

Returning his smile, Alaine found the strength to carry herself on over towards
the table. She quietly sat down beside Sam and reached for the plate that he
had placed in the center.

Clearing his throat and pushing his empty plate to the side, Dean tore his gaze
away from Alaine to look over at his brother. “Alright. You got me up at this
ungodly hour, this better be good.” 

          “Don't worry. It is,” Sam replied as he lifted the screen of his
laptop that sat in front of him. He opened up the Internet browser which had
already been displaying a specific article from a town’s online news site He
turned his laptop around and faced it in Dean’s direction for him to be able to
read. 

          “What's this?” Dean asked as he leaned forward and brought the laptop
closer to him.

          “Our next case. Steven Briggs – construction worker, father of two.
He died late last night while working on the interior demolition of an old
opera theater in Detroit.”

          “Doesn't sound unordinary to me,” Alaine stated as she began to eat
from her food.

          “Yeah,” Dean followed up. “He ain't the first guy to die while on the
job.”

Sam shot his brother one of his famous expressions as he turned the laptop
around to face him and pulled up another web page. Once he was done, he flipped
it back around and sat back. “How's this for unordinary.”

Dean focused his eyes onto the screen and stared at the image in front of him.
“Huh,” he huffed after a few seconds. “Guess this one’s goin’ down in the books
under crap we've never seen.” 

Alaine raised a brow in confusion. “What do you mean?”

          “See for yourself.” 

Alaine took the laptop from Dean and turned it in her direction. Once her
vision focused on the picture, her eyes instantly widened. “Woah,” she breathed
out. The picture had displayed the main entrance hall of the broken down opera
theater. In the center of the picture was an old iron chandelier hanging down
from the ceiling and impaled onto the sharp candlestick holders with his broken
limbs limply hanging was the construction worker Sam had spoken about.

          “How the hell did he get up there?” Dean asked his brother. “That
thing’s gotta be at least fifteen to twenty feet off the ground.”

          “Seventeen to be exact,” Sam responded as he propped up his elbows
onto the tabletop. “The police report stated that one of his coworkers saw him
literally five  minutes before his death. They’d been taking a small break when
the guy got up to go the bathroom. When he came back, he saw that Steven wasn't
around so he went to look for him and that's when he stumbled into the entrance
hall and saw him hanging up on the chandelier with his neck twisted around and
his arms and legs all sticking out in unnatural angles.”

          “That's must've been horrible,” Alaine grimaced as she cut into her
waffle with the side of her fork.

          “I'm thinking we’re either dealing with a vengeful spirit or a demon.
Either way, this is definitely something worth checking out.” 

With a small grunt, Dean stretched his arms out in front of him before turning
in his seat to rise to his feet. “Alright, let's do it. The sooner we get
packin’ the better. Detroit’s a long drive from here.” 


                                                                         
 
                                                                               
                                        *     *     *     *     *

         
          
          Upon arriving in the city of Detroit, the three Hunters headed
towards the cheapest motel they could find to settle in and go over the details
of the case once more before suiting up into their FBI disguises and going to
the scene of the incident. They had rented two separate rooms, one for Sam and
Dean to share whereas the other was for the sake of Alaine's privacy. The three
had gathered together inside of her bedroom to go over their plan. Sam and Dean
were going to head out to the theater to talk to the other construction workers
to gain better insight of the situation while Alaine decided to stay back to
try to find any information relevant to the opera theater’s history. The
brothers had left shortly after speaking with Alaine and drove out to their
destination. When they had arrived to the theater, there was a yellow tape
surrounding the gate of the front entrance that held back the many reporters
and civilians from crossing over into the crime scene at the entrance of the
old building. As Sam and Dean climbed out of the Impala, a short female police
officer made her way over to them and held up a hand to halt them.

          “Sorry, gentleman. This is a no parking zone, you're gonna have to
move your car further up the street.”

          “It's okay,” Sam smiled as he reached into the inside pocket of his
suit jacket. Fishing out his fake FBI badge, he flipped it open and flashed it
to the officer. “We're FBI. I'm special agent Jordan and this is my partner
special agent Wayne.” 

The officer narrowed her eyes as she dropped her hand to her side. “FBI? I
don't think this calls for a federal investigation.”

          “Well, we just go where they send us,” Dean spoke up. “Did you guys
get rid of the body yet?”

The officer glanced over at Dean and stared at him for a moment before turning
around to walk away. “Yeah. There really isn't much left to look at as for
evidence.”

Sam and Dean moved to follow her past the police tape and up the cement steps
of the theater. Once inside, the officer stopped in the center of the entrance
hall and turned back around to face the brothers. 

          “This is where we found the guy,” she spoke, raising a hand and
pointing up at the ceiling. “We're still trying to piece everything together.
We have no clue on how in the hell he managed to get up there.”

Dean began to slowly pace around, his eyes scanning over his surroundings as he
searched for anything that would've been overlooked by the police but would
clearly stand out to him to him as out of the ordinary. 

          “Was there anyone else that saw him before his death?” Sam asked the
officer. 

          “By the looks of it, just that one guy. We took him down to the
station for questioning. He knows more than what he's letting on. You're more
than welcome to take a crack at him.”

Sam smiled as he shoved his large hands into his pockets. “That'll be great.”

The officer gave him a curt nod. “Feel free to take a look around, I'll be
right outside if you need me.” 

After she left the building and Sam was assured that there was no one left
inside, he made his way over to his brother whom had been kneeling over a large
pile of worn out wood planks and was staring at it questionably. 

          “What do you think about splitting up and doing an EMF sweep?”

Dean looked over his shoulder at Sam who approached him from behind. “This
place is huge. It's gonna take us hours to scan through it all.”

Sam sighed. “Well, let's hope Alaine calls back soon with some useful insight.
So far, it's looking less like anything demon related.”

Dean nodded his head and slowly rose to his feet. He dusted his hands off
before reaching into the inside of his suit jacket for his EMF reader.
“Alright, let's get this started.” 

Going with Sam's idea, they both split up. Sam went towards the west end of the
theater while Dean headed  north. With flashlight and EMF in hand, Dean made
his way towards the grand hall which was the place within the theater where
people used to gather together back in the day to hold banquets or
celebrations. The overhead balcony was falling apart as the ceiling was coming
close to caving in. He cautiously walked further into the hall, making sure as
to watch his every step. He'd flash his flashlight around to illuminate his
surroundings and would wave his EMF in the air in attempt to pick up any
readings. After spending over ten minutes searching through that one part of
the theater and coming out empty handed, he decided to find another room to
scan. As he began to make his way back out, his cellphone had suddenly started
to ring loudly from within the confines of his pant pocket. Slipping his
flashlight in between his underarm, he quickly fished out his phone to check
the caller ID. He could see that Alaine's name was displayed across screen
along with a picture of the both of them sitting inside of the Impala making
silly faces into the camera. That specific day, they had gone out to have some
fun and she had mentioned to him how it had been years since they had taken a
picture together. Upon making that statement, she had grabbed his cellphone
from his hand, turned on the camera and threw her arm around his neck to bring
him in closer. She pressed her face against his and sucked in her cheeks as
Dean stuck out his tongue and crossed his eyes. The picture was one of the few
he had of them together and it was by far his favorite. It reminded him of how
great it felt to share those kinds of special moments with her. It was one of
the things that made him realize just how much he truly loved being around her
and the reminder  of that gave him a sinking feeling in his heart. He clenched
the phone in his hand tightly and stared at the image on the screen for a few
seconds longer before he sucked in a deep breath and clicked the answer icon.

          “Yeah?” he cleared his throat as he spoke into the speaker. 

          “I tried calling Sam but he hasn't picked up my calls,” she
responded.

          “It's probably the reception in this place. Did you – uh, come up
with anything?”

          “I did, actually. I found an old article dating back to the 50’s that
speaks of an old fire that burned the majority of the place down. The fire
started down in the basement where the dressing rooms were and spread up
through the rest of the building. Luckily, everyone managed to escape, all
except one woman. Miriam Lowe – she was a rising starlet in her early twenties.
She kickstarted her career playing as an understudy and had gotten her first
break to star as the leading voice the night that the fire started. There had
been rumors going around that the she was having an affair with the director
and I'm guessing someone didn't take too kindly to it. After an investigation
was done, they ruled it an intentional fire. The police found stacks of hate
mail in her mailbox that had all been written by the same person – a guy named
Stephen Jones. After being arrested, he confessed to setting the pace ablaze
and was sentenced to the chair for the death of Miriam.”

          “So, looks like we're dealin’ with a vengeful spirit,” Dean stated.

          “Yeah. After the fire, the place was shut down and abandoned. The
state sold it over to a prospective buyer sixty three years later who then
hired contractors to tear it down and build a residential complex in its place.
I'm guessing the recent activity must've disturbed Miriam's spirit.”

          “And now she's out lookin’ for blood,” he sighed. “I'll go find Sam
and give him the lowdown. We should be back in a couple of hours so just stay
put.”

          “Got it.”

For a brief moment, silence befell them. All he could hear was her steady
breathing into the phone. There was a growing tension between them and with
every passing second it became more and more suffocating. They both wanted to
speak to one another, but neither of them had the courage to utter the first
word. 

With a sigh, Alaine spoke up. “I – I gotta go. See you later.”

          “Yeah… Alright,” Dean murmured into the phone. “See you later.”

With that, she hung up, leaving him hanging on to all of the things he was
dying to say to her circling around in his mind. He was starting to feel as if
he was on the verge of losing his sanity. Exhaling heavily, he stuffed his
phone back into his pocket and began to walk out of the grand hall to go in
search of his brother. 


                                                                       
 
                                                                               
                                           *     *     *     *     *

         
          
          Later on in the day, Sam and Dean stopped by the police department to
have a word with the only witness who was being held in one of the
interrogation rooms within the precinct. Their conversation with the man hadn't
lasted very long. They asked him questions based off what he knew and his brief
answers were enough to reveal to them what they needed to know. With all of the
information they had gathered during the day, they had enough to come up with a
game plan to solve the case. After leaving the precinct, they drove back to the
motel to change into their regular clothes and assemble the necessary equipment
to take on the ghost of Miriam Lowe. They spent a couple of hours lounging
around in wait for the sun to set before gathering their things and leaving.
When they arrived at the theater, Dean had parked the car in a nearby alley to
make sure they wouldn’t be seen entering or leaving the building. Sam and
Alaine had grabbed the duffel bags from the trunk of the car and followed Dean
towards a side entrance to the theater and broke through the chained door with
a bolt cutter and quietly slipped inside. They set their things down on the
ground just inside of the door and began to sift through the bags for
flashlights to illuminate the dark room. Once the place was flooded with the
soft light, Sam turned to face both Dean and Alaine.

          “Alright,” he spoke softly. “We know what to do. We’ll head down into
the basement and split up to search for her remains. Let’s try not to go too
far in case something goes wrong. It’s possible that she might come after me or
Dean because we’re men, so Alaine, you should be safe. If things go as planned,
this will be our rendezvous point.”

         “Let’s get goin’ then,” Dean spoke up as he took out a sawed off
shotgun from one of the duffle bags and handed it over to Alaine. Once they
were all armed and ready, they began to tread through the abandoned building on
over towards the door that would lead down into the basement. Lighting the way
with their flashlights, they carefully descended the rusted spiral staircase.
As they made their way into the deepest darkest part of the theater, the three
Hunters felt the atmosphere instantly shift. The air around them had grown
thicker and colder which was a clear sign that they were getting close to
wherever the spirit was. 

          “Everybody look alive,” Dean murmured as he lead Sam and Alaine
through a long narrow corridor. They proceeded further into the destroyed
basement which still smelled heavily of charred wood. The support beams from up
on the ceiling were falling apart and the walls as well as the floor were
coated in soot. They had walked a few feet further down the hall when suddenly,
Alaine stopped. 

Sam bumped into her, causing her small frame to slightly jolt forward. “Sorry,”
he muttered. 

Dean had been standing a few feet away, flashing his flashlight around when he
stopped to turn around and face them. “Come on, guys. What’s the holdup?” 

          “I felt something touch my hair,” she half whispered.

Dean shone his light directly on them to get a better look at their faces, but
when his gaze landed on Alaine, his eyes immediately widened. From within the
shadows, he could make out the figure of a woman standing behind her and just
to the left of Sam’s shoulder he could see pale fingers reach out to touch him.

          “Sam, watch out!”

Hearing his warning, both Sam and Alaine quickly ducked away as he cocked his
shotgun and aimed it directly at the ghost. He fired a single shot but had
missed as the ghost vanished into thin air in front of him. 

          “Dammit,” he exclaimed as he tightened his grasp on the fore-end.
“You two alright?”

          “Yeah, we’re good,” Sam spoke up as he moved from where he was
crouched to stand upright. “We need to find her remains quick before she pops
up again.”

          “Alright. Sam you take the right, Alaine you’re with me,” Dean
authoritatively spoke as he turned to face her with a stern countenance. 

Picking up her shotgun that she had dropped, she moved over to stand by his
side as Sam turned to walk in the opposite direction.

          “Be careful,” he called out to both of them as he moved down the hall
in the opposite direction.

          “You too,” Dean called out. Turning back around, he began to walk
away and Alaine followed suit. For several minutes, they remained silent. The
tension that surrounded them was like a heavy weight on their shoulders. They
both had so much that they wanted to say each other but because of their fear
and reluctance to speaking their minds, they refrained from uttering a single
word. Dean chose to focus his attention on the task at hand which was to find
the remains of the ghost somewhere within the basement. They searched every
room and corner that they came across, but to no avail. With a deep sigh, Dean
went to reach for his phone inside of his pocket to call Sam when out of thin
air the ghastly apparition appeared right before him. With a wave of its hand,
it knocked him backwards into a wall that had caved in with the forceful impact
of Dean’s body crashing into it. Flying through the wall, he landed into the
room on the other side and hit the floor with a loud thud. 

          “Dean!” Alaine shouted as she moved to cock her shotgun. The ghost
turned its head around to face her with a sickening smile and with the blink of
an eye it stood in front of her, staring directly into her startled eyes. From
up close, the sight of Miriam Lowe’s charred flesh was stomach-churning and
spine-chilling. As Alaine went to pull the trigger, the ghost knocked the
shotgun out of her hand and threw her into the wall. When she hit the floor,
she landed onto her side and banged her head onto an old rusted pipe that stuck
out from the ground. She let out a yelp and Dean was struggling to scramble
onto his feet. 

          “Hey! Over here you freak,” Dean called out with a pained groan as he
crawled across the floor. 

The ghost snapped its head to look over at him and with a disembodied snarl it
teleported across the room on over to where he was and in an instant it wrapped
its icy cold hands around his throat and lifted him up in the air. Dean let out
a strangled grunt as the ghost tightened its grip and squeezed down onto his
windpipe. His hands flew out and wrapped around the spirit's wrists as he tried
to force its hands from around his neck, but the more he struggled, the harder
it choked him.

Disoriented and unbalanced, Alaine gathered the strength to dash across the
hall to grab up her shotgun. 

The ghost had sensed her movement and with one sudden motion, it hurled Dean
through the air, causing him to crash into Alaine’s staggering body. His heavy
frame slammed hard against her, completely knocking the wind out of her as his
elbow rammed right into her chest. They tumbled down onto the floor and Dean
landed on top of her with a loud grunt of pain. The apparition now began to
stalk its way over to them with a menacing glare in its eyes but as it stood
right over them, it froze, a look of fear coming across its face. Within
seconds, a loud blood-curdling shriek rang through the air as it bursted into
flames and quickly vanished into nothingness. 

With a breathless groan, Dean shakily placed his hands flat on the ground as he
attempted to support his bodyweight onto his arms. From under him, he could
hear Alaine wheezing for air and with great effort, he threw himself off of her
and landed on the floor next to her. 

          “Hey,” he called out as he rolled onto his side to face her, his hand
reaching out to touch her shoulder. “Talk to me. You okay?”

She gasped for air a few times before slowly rolling around onto her stomach
and getting onto her hands and knees. Her trembling limbs were unable to hold
up the weight of her body and with a small groan, she fell back down. Dean’s
arms had reached out to catch her and she collapsed into his chest. 

         “I got you,” he grunted as he adjusted himself onto his knees. With
one arm around her torso, he held her against him as he used his free hand to
pull himself up from the ground by grabbing onto an iron gas pipe that came out
of the wall beside him. Alaine quickly clutched onto his arm for support as her
wobbly legs gave out from under her. Dean cursed in pain as he stood upright
and leaned up against the wall for support as he clutched her tightly to his
chest. 

          “Sam…” Alaine breathlessly began to speak.

          “Yeah,” Dean responded, already knowing what she was trying to say.
“He just saved our asses.” He stuck a hand into his jacket pocket and retrieved
his cellphone to dial his brother’s number. “Come on, let’s go find him so we
can get the hell out of here.”


                                                                         
 
                                                                               
                                      *     *     *     *     *

         
 
          After closing the case, the three of them tiredly made their way back
to the motel to shower, change and turn in for the night. As Alaine climbed out
of the car and walked on over towards her motel room door, Sam turned to his
brother inside of the car. 

          “Hey. Um, is it cool if I take the car? I’m kind of hungry and was
thinking about grabbing something to eat at the diner up the road.”

          “As long as you bring me back a cheeseburger,” Dean responded as he
climbed out.

Sam smiled as he slid across the seats and positioned himself at the wheel.
“Yeah, sure thing.”

As Sam started up the Impala and backed out of the parking lot, Dean made his
way into their room and with a heavy sigh he shed off his jacket and dropped it
onto the empty chair by the door. He lazily stepped up to his bed and began to
ruffle through his bag on top of the mattress for a change of clothes and his
bottle of body wash. He pulled out a clean t-shirt along with a pair of fresh
boxer briefs and immediately headed into the bathroom. Stripping out of his
clothes, he piled each article on top of one another into the corner and
carefully stepped into the tub. He reached for the shower handle to turn on the
water and let out a hum of content as the hot stream that spewed from the
shower head trickled down his body. He let the soothing water wash over him for
several long minutes before he squirted a generous amount of body wash into his
hands and began to bathe himself from head to toe. He vigorously scrubbed every
inch of his body to cleanse away all of the dirt, grime and sweat from the day
and once he was assured that he was in fact now clean, he climbed out of the
tub and grabbed up the towel from the rack to dry himself. After slipping into
his clean boxer briefs and t-shirt, he then stepped out of the bathroom and
back into the bedroom. He quickly dried his hair before he tossed the towel
onto the carpeted floor and stepped up to his bed. For a moment, he stood
frozen in place as he was trapped in thought. He couldn’t help but feel a
strange yearning begin to build inside of him. He sighed. Why can’t I stop
thinkin’ of her? he thought to himself as he closed his eyes. For the entire
day, his mind had been running endlessly. He had been thinking of all of the
things he wanted to tell her, but he hadn’t been able to find the will to speak
them. He began to recall the words of his brother from the night before – man
up or let her go. He couldn’t deny that his brother did have a point;
everything he had said had been absolutely accurate. No one knew him better
than Sam and the fact that his own brother had been able to state the one thing
that Dean was too afraid to admit to himself only meant that what he felt for
Alaine was definitely real. It was as real and as true as the stars that graced
the night sky with its magnificent beauty. He knew it now. He finally
understood it and the epiphany that had struck him at that very moment nearly
knocked him flat on his ass; It was time for him to make a choice.

Reaching into his duffle bag, Dean hastily pulled out a clean pair of jeans
along with some socks and dressed himself. He didn't bother with throwing on
his jacket because he wasn't planning on going far. With one quick stride, he
made his way across the room on over towards the door and yanked it open. He
stepped out into the dark, chilly night and walked up to Alaine's motel room
which was right next door. Without hesitation, he raked his knuckles against
the door and waited for a response. He anxiously stood there as his heart
thundered dangerously within his chest. He waited a few seconds before knocking
once more, but this time, he pounded his fist against the door as he called out
her name. He wasn't thinking about the fact that it was close to one in the
morning and that people were probably sleeping nearby, he wasn't taking into
consideration that maybe Alaine was tired and wanted nothing more than a decent
nights rest. The only thing that was coursing through his mind and body was the
inexplicable feeling of desperation and fervent longing that had brought him
right to her door. He didn't care about anything else but following what his
heart was commanding him to do.

Inside of the room, Alaine had been in the bathroom and had just gotten out of
the shower when she heard a sudden knock to her motel room door. As she began
to dry herself and change into her sleepwear, the knocking grew louder. At that
moment, she heard Dean’s voice calling out to her from outside and she quickly
pulled on her tank-top and cotton sleep shorts before stepping out of the
bathroom. Whatever reason he had for pounding on her door had to be a serious
one. She wasted no time drying her wet hair and with great speed, she dashed
across the room and grasped onto the doorknob. 

Dean had been  growing more desperate as his knocking became louder, but in the
blink of an eye, the light from within the room flooded outside as the door
swung wide open to reveal a frantic looking Alaine, her face, hair and body
still damp from her shower. His eyes landed on her and his chest instantly
tightened.

          “What's going on?” she rushed out as her wide gaze focused on his
distraught countenance. 

He stared at her. “Alaine. I… I – uh, I'm…”

          “What is it?” she urged. “Did something happen?”

          “No,” he responded quickly. “No, nothin’ happened. I just – I gotta
talk to you.”

Alaine's brows raised in confusion. “Dean, it's late and I'm tired-“

          “I know,” he interrupted as he took a step forward. “Trust me, if
this wasn't important, I would've came in the mornin’ but I can't want til
then. I really can't.”

She could hear the anxiety in his voice as he spoke. Her eyes questionably
scanned his face; she didn't have a clue as to what was wrong with him and
although she was concerned, she did not have the energy nor mental strength to
try to figure it out. “Listen – whatever it is, you can tell me tomorrow. Right
now I just really need some sleep.”

Dean’s facial expression shifted. “Please,” he implored her. “I'm beggin’ you.
I can't hold this in, it's tearin’ me up inside.”

The look of his desperate countenance and the sound of him pleading for her to
listen was enough for her to break. Dean wasn't one to beg anyone for anything
and the fact that he had just done so with her, it only indicated that whatever
it was that was on his mind had to be a matter of grave importance. 

          “What's wrong?” she gently asked. 

          “Everything,” he breathed out as he stuck out his arms. “The way I've
been actin’ towards you… God – I've been fightin’ so hard. I kept tellin’
myself it ain't real, that it's just my mind thinkin’ things cause of the way I
feel, but dammi - the more I keep denyin’ it, the harder it friggin’ gets and I
just can't fight this anymore. I'm tryin’ but it ain't in me. I don't got the
strength to keep tellin’ myself that I don't want you cause the truth is I do.
I want you more than anything or anyone I've ever wanted in my entire life. I
can't friggin’ explain it, but it's drivin’ me crazy. I look at you and all I
see is a beautiful, strong woman that I don't deserve... How can a man like me
be worthy of someone like you? You're good and kind. You're everything that I
ain't and it wouldn’t be right for us to be together. Even if I don't want to,
I'll end up destroying everything that's  good in you til there ain't nothin’
left. Men like me – we’re poison and I'd rather shoot myself dead before ever
hurtin’ you. I can't do that you. You deserve so much more than what I could
ever give you. What I want, what I feel, it don't matter. What matters is you
and that’s the reason why I'm choosin’ to let this go. I hurt you last night, I
saw it in your face. I made you cry and I can't live with the fact that I did
that to you. Alaine, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for whatever I've done to make you
hate me. Believe me when I tell you that I never wanted for this to happen, but
it's my fault. It's all on me, so if you want to leave, I promise I won't try
to stop you. We can go back to the Bunker tomorrow to get your stuff and you'll
never have to see me again.”

Alaine stood before him with her head bowed and an aching pain in her heart.
All of the words he had just spoken were swirling around in her mind and she
felt herself on the verge of tears. With a shaky deep breath, she swallowed
away the lump in her throat and spoke up. “So... Is that what you want? For me
to leave?”

          “It's what's best for you-“

          “Just stop it,” she bit out as she lifted her head to look up into
his face. “Stop trying to decide for me.”

He gazed down into her glistening eyes. “Alaine-“

          “No,” she interrupted. “I don't want to hear anymore of your self
loathing. I don't care that you think your poison, I don't care that you think
you're not good enough for me because that's not how I feel at all. None of
that matters to me, Dean. Whatever you've done, whatever you've been through,
none of that matters because through it all, I see you. Underneath that rugged
exterior of yours is a man that's worth so much more than what he could ever
imagine and that's the man that I want. That's the man that I've wanted for so
freaking long.”

Alaine took a moment's pause to take a deep breath. She briefly closed her eyes
before she began to speak once more. “I never was able to see myself being with
someone after you. The thought of it always made me sick and at a young age I
ended up deciding that if it wasn't you, I didn’t want anyone else and still
til this day I've stuck by my choice. I wanted you back then, even years after
and especially now. Nothing's changed the way I've felt about you and I don't
think nothing ever will.”

Dean felt as if all the air had been knocked right out of his lungs. He was
staring at her, his stunned gaze boring into her red rimmed eyes as she stared
back. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. She had truthfully spoken her
heart and it hadn't been what he had expected. He strongly believed that she no
longer wanted anything to do with him, but it was quite the opposite. All of
his doubts and concerns had been cast out of his mind by the sincere words she
had finished uttering to him. She wanted him. Flaws and all, she wanted him. 

The air around them grew thick with fervent desire as they held each other's
burning gaze. Without a second’s hesitation, Dean gave in. He left all of his
worries and fears outside the door as he rushed inside and threw his arms
around her waist to pull her into him. Reaching up, Alaine cupped his jaw into
her hands as she brought his mouth down to hers and kissed him. At the impact
of their lips touching, a newfound emotion crackled to life around them that
heightened every single nerve within their bodies and sent a mind numbing
electrifying current through their veins. With a shaky gasp, Alaine melted into
him as her body went limp in his arms. His hands moved from the middle of her
back and slid down to grasp her wide ass as his lips molded themselves against
hers and his tongue licked into her mouth. He squeezed down on her backside,
his fingers digging into the fabric of her shorts while her hands left his face
to clutch onto the hem of his charcoal t-shirt. As her tongue entangled itself
around his, he released his grip on her ass. He raised his arms up in the air
as she pulled his shirt up the length of his body and over his head. She tossed
it onto the floor and with an ardent glare, she lunged at him, her hands
grasping onto his broad shoulders. She dug her fingers into the lean muscle as
her mouth found its way back to his and she kissed him with desperation.
Letting out a soft sigh, Dean cupped her cheek into his palm as his other hand
rested itself onto her waist and gripped her tight. Her hands hungrily trailed
across his shoulders and tantalizingly made their way down to his chest, her
nails gently raking against his bare skin as she traced her fingers over his
toned abdomen. When she reached his waistline, he quickly toed off his boots as
she unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans. Briefly breaking the kiss, he pushed
them down to his ankles, stepped out of them and kicked them to the side. He
then gripped onto her hips and with one motion, removed her shorts. He nudged
her slightly, taking a step forward which forced her to take one back. With
caution, he guided her over towards the bed and when the back of her knees
touched the mattress, he gently pushed her back. Alaine fell onto the bed with
a soft thud and within seconds, Dean was climbing on top of her, his mouth
finding hers and sucking onto her lush bottom lip. She let out a quiet whimper,
the seductive sound forcing a violent shock to shoot down his spine as a
shudder raked through his body. She slowly began to crawl her way backwards
across the mattress and stopped when she reached the headboard. She plopped
herself down and Dean’s hands began to travel all over her body. They began to
softly trail up the length of her tanned thighs and torturously made their way
up to her waist to clutch onto the hem of her tank-top. With ease, he peeled
the shirt off of her body and threw it over his shoulder. Now that she was
lying beneath him in nothing but her purple lace panties, Dean took the moment
to admire what was before him. His surprised eyes analyzed every inch of her
naked body. The perfect shape of her small breasts, the soft muscles of her
lightly toned abdomen, the deep curves of her waist, the wideness of her hips –
there was just so much of her for him to admire. His lust filled gazed trailed
down the length of her thick thighs and slowly made their way back up to her
flustered face. When their eyes locked, Alaine tensed up under the intensity of
his stare and went to cover her bare chest with her hands but Dean quickly
reached out to stop her. He softly grasped onto her wrists and brought them
back down to her sides.

          “You're absolutely beautiful,” he breathlessly praised. 

          “Dean,” she murmured, her tone sounding hesitant and unsure. 

With a small smile, he leaned in closer to her. “It's okay that you're scared.
If at any moment you want me to stop, tell me. I won't get mad. I don't want to
make you feel like you have to do this. I want you to want it as much as I do.
You can tell me if you're not ready.”

Alaine stared into his caring eyes for a moment before she spoke up. “I want
it,” she softly spoke. “I want you.”

          “Good. Now, I need you to trust me. Can you do that?”

She gently nodded her head. “Yes.”

          “I promise I won't hurt you, but the minute you start to feel scared
or uncomfortable, I want you to let me know so I can stop right then and there.
You don't have to do anything that you’re not okay with.”

Alaine nodded her head once more in understanding. 

With another reassuring smile, Dean brought his face down to hers and kissed
her ever so softly. He lightly pressed his lips against hers, giving her gentle
kisses before he broke away to trail his mouth across her jaw. Alaine bit her
lip in attempt to hold back a moan as he nibbled his way down her neck and on
over to her collar bone. He cautiously kissed her down the center of her chest
until his face was in between both of her breasts. A shudder ran down her spine
as the small hairs of his beard scraped against her skin. She was now gripping
onto the bedsheets with white-knuckle force as the anticipation that had begun
to grow inside of her became utterly unbearable. Reading into her body
language, Dean hovered his face over her right breast and let out a deep breath
as he wrapped his lush lips around the hardened peak. At the sudden feel of his
warm mouth on her skin, she let out a hushed moan as her back arched into him.
He flattened a hand over her bare thigh and trailed it up to her knee to push
her legs apart. Positioning himself in between them, he continued to softly
suck on her breast and after several long seconds, he then pulled away as his
fingers raked down her stomach to hook under the waistband of her panties. He
grabbed the thin fabric in his hands and slowly peeled it off of her body. He
had now left her completely exposed to his view and Alaine couldn't help but
feel subconscious about herself. Noticing the weary expression on her face,
Dean softly spoke up. 

          “Would you like for me to stop?

Alaine swallowed. “No. I'm… I just-“

          “It's okay,” he reassured yet again, his gravelly voice sending a
wave of calm over her. “Just remember what I said. If you're not ready, tell
me.”

For a few seconds, Alaine stood quiet. She couldn't deny the fact that she was
extremely nervous. For years, she hadn't known what the touch of a man felt
like, yet here was Dean Winchester, the man of any woman's dream kissing and
caressing her. It was almost too good to be true. She couldn't count the amount
of times she had fantasized about this very moment. If one thing was for sure,
it was that the real thing was definitely better than what she had pictured in
her mind. To see him sitting there half naked in front of her was enough to
send her mind spiraling into a frenzy. She had imagined what he would look like
underneath all of his clothing and she was getting a little taste of what he
was truly hiding. Her gazed traveled down from his face all the way to the
large bulge of his erection that was straining under his boxer briefs. It was a
sight that had her staring at him wide eyed. It only made sense that it would
definitely not look the same after nineteen years. After puberty and whatnot,
it was obvious that it would change in size but never did she imagine the
difference to be jaw dropping. When her eyes made their way back up to his
face, they landed on the sight of a widely seductive smirk that tugged at the
corners of his mouth. 

           “You know, it's not polite to stare,” he playfully teased, his voice
rich and heavy with lust. 

Alaine's face flushed a bright pink. “I'm sorry,” she awkwardly rushed out.

          “Don't be. What do you say I give you a better peek?”

Her eyes widened further. She had been waiting for this for so long. To see
him, to touch and feel him. The anticipation was driving her up a wall as well
as turning her into a nervous mess. 

Dean didn't wait for an answer. Hooking his thumbs under the elastic waistband
of his boxer briefs, he slowly pushed them down the length of his thighs until
his erection had sprung free. He was standing at full attention and Alaine was
staring wildly at the breathtaking sight in front of her. The soft lines of his
Adonis belt were like an arrow that pointed directly to the center masterpiece.
Although it was the only one she had ever seen in her entire life, to her it
was absolutely perfect. From its shape and length to its pale pink color, all
the way to the ridges of the thick veins that ran across it – every single
detail was just amazingly beautiful. 

          “Do you like what you see?” he asked, his tone laced with ardent
hunger. 

Alaine glanced up into his face and gasped softly to see the desire that
visibly burned in his eyes. He wanted her. 

          “Yes,” she breathlessly replied. 

Dean smirked once more. “Then tell me you want it.”

She blinked up at him. She definitely wanted him. When she'd think back to the
night they lost their virginities to one another, the experience had been
something brief. There hadn't been any sensual touching or kissing. It was
something that had happened so quickly that it had been over as soon as it
started. Now, the situation was completely different. They had the opportunity
to truly enjoy one another to the fullest without any interruptions or having
to keep track of time; it was the perfect moment. Her mind was running with
thoughts of what she wanted him to do to her and the desperation that had been
clawing at her was on the verge of driving her insane. She not only wanted him,
she needed him. She needed to feel him in ways she had never felt him before.

          “Let me hear you say it,” he commanded as he placed a palm flat over
the inside of her right thigh. 

Alaine squirmed at the feel of his fingertips gliding across her sensitive
skin. He slowly moved his hand down and stopped when it met the crease of her
ass. 

          “Say it,” he ordered softly. 

She was now breathing heavily as every nerve inside of her tingled with
uncontrollable need. Her body was screaming to be touched, to be caressed. She
couldn't hold it in any longer.

          “Fuck me.”

At the sound of those salacious words, a low growl rumbled deep inside of his
chest. He finished taking off his underwear and once he was completely naked,
he moved to position himself in between her legs. Wrapping a hand around the
base of his throbbing erection, he gripped it into his grasp and gently rubbed
it against her folds. At the feel of his soft skin, Alaine's body trembled as a
small shock of electricity ran through her. He gently massaged her pearl with
the underside of his shaft before dragging it down to her small opening and
pressing against it. He released himself and placed his palms flat on the bed
on either side of her head as he hovered over her. Locking gazes, Dean
carefully slipped into her wet entrance. Alaine moaned loudly as his thick
shaft penetrated her. She gripped onto his biceps and braced herself as his
hips slowly pushed forward and he eased himself inside of her. Dean exhaled as
her walls wrapped around the crown of his erection. The blissful sensation was
utterly mind numbing and he couldn't help but softly groan as he slid deeper
into her slick core. He had only managed to get one fourth of his shaft inside
of her and as he tried to go in farther, her walls clamped down on him. He
cursed as a wave a sheer pleasure washed over him and knocked the wind out of
his lungs. He couldn't understand it, but every sensation, every nerve inside
of his body had been heightened. What he was feeling at that exact moment was
something he had never experienced before with another woman. Although he's
slept with many, none of them ever managed to truly satisfy them. He
encountered different types of women. From innocent virgins, to closet freaks
and wild cougars, he's had them all yet not a single one had been capable of
making him feel the way he was feeling at this very instant with Alaine. To
him, this was something he hadn't known was possible. It was like a sense of
utter completion, as if he had finally come across what he had been missing for
so long, as if he had found the missing puzzle piece. As he stared down into
her half lidded eyes, one single thought crossed his mind – this is what I
want. He wasn't going to lie to himself any longer. He wanted her and he was
damn sure going to do whatever it took to keep her.
***** 9 *****
   It was near eight A.M when Dean softly stirred awake. He slowly blinked open
his eyes and adjusted his vision to the light from the bathroom that half
illuminated the room. Raising his arms up above him, he stretched his limbs as
he stifled a yawn. His body felt extremely sore from yesterday's hunt and he
was in desperate need of a massage. Scratching at his facial hair, he turned
his head to the right and saw that Alaine was lying right next to him,
completely naked and with the sheets bunched up around her waist. At that
moment, images of the previous night’s passionate lovemaking flashed through
his mind and he couldn't help but smile to himself. There just weren't words
that could properly describe the magical moment he had shared with her. It had
been perfect beyond belief. From every touch, to every kiss and every word that
was spoken, it had all been inexplicably amazing. For the first time ever, Dean
sincerely felt happy and it was a feeling he didn't want to let go of. He
wanted to hold on to it for as long as he could. Shifting to turn on his side,
he propped himself up onto his forearm and fixed his gaze onto Alaine. She was
lying flat on her stomach with her arms spread out on the bed on either side of
her head  and the soft waves of her hair falling over her face like a silky
curtain. He intently studied her features. The subtle curve of her nose, the
plump shape of her pink lips, the soft arch of her eyebrows. Every small detail
was just absolutely breathtaking. He didn't know why but to him, she was pure
perfection. He took in a deep breath and sighed. After so many years of being
abstinent, she had decided to give herself to him once more. It was almost as
if he had taken her virginity a second time and the thought of that flooded his
heart. She had been his back then and she was definitely his now. At thirty-
five years old, she had only ever slept with one man and he couldn't help but
feel honored to have that privilege of being the sole person she had ever been
intimate with. There was so much meaning behind it. She had chosen him. Out of
all the men that she had ever crossed paths with, out of all the men that had
ever stepped into her life whether for a brief moment or for a long extended
period of time, Alaine had chosen him. It was a fact that meant so much to him.
Although he felt unworthy of her, here she was, choosing to ignore every reason
as to why she shouldn't be with him, choosing to cast aside his dark past to
make herself a part of his present and future. She didn't care about anything
else but being with him and Dean now understood what it meant to have someone
see him as perfectly imperfect. It meant that for her, she found beauty in
every single one of his flaws, that although deep inside he was full of
darkness, she was still able to find that small speck of bright light within
him. All he had ever wanted was for someone to see him in the way she saw him,
that through all of the bad, they could only see goodness. With a shaky sigh,
Dean reached out a hand and gently brushed away the strands of hair from her
face; she was absolutely beautiful. He affectionately stroked his fingertips
across her cheek and trailed them down to her jaw. With his thumb, he traced
around the shape of her mouth and gently swept it across the soft flesh of her
bottom lip as he slowly leaned in closer to her to press a kiss to her
forehead. He let his lips linger over her skin as he inhaled the enchanting
aroma of her floral scent that he just couldn't get enough of. Pulling his hand
away from her face, he flattened it over the center of her back. He moved and
began to leave featherlight kisses over the light dusting of freckles that
beautifully speckled across her shoulder blades. Trailing his lips across her
back, he kissed his way down her spine, his stubble lightly grazing against her
skin. When he reached her waistline, a hushed groan escaped Alaine as she began
to stir. Dean smiled as he continued to press his lips over the dimples of her
back and slowly pulled away the sheets that covered her from the waist down. He
lifted them off of her and settled his gaze onto the beauty of her nude body.
From the top of her head to all the way down to the soles of her small feet,
every part of her was exposed to his view and it was a sight that left him
feeling breathless. Placing a palm over her bare backside, he gripped the firm
flesh into his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Another groan could be heard
as Alaine shifted positions. She let out a deep exhale as she slowly turned
around to lay on her back then sighed softly once she settled back down. With a
hushed chuckle, Dean uncovered himself and pushed the sheets down to the foot
of the bed as he moved to hover over her. He positioned himself onto his hands
and knees with her body directly underneath him and slowly dropped his head
until his mouth was mere inches away from her chest. With the tip of his nose,
he gently traced around the curves of her breasts and watched as the small
peaks began to harden under his touch. She let out a soft moan as her head
moved from side to side. Looking up through his lashes, he saw her eyes begin
to slowly flutter open to reveal her beautiful golden irises. She was somewhat
disoriented as her her unfocused vision searched all around her for the source
of where the soft caresses were coming from. When her gaze landed on the sight
of Dean on top of her, her eyes raked the entire length of his naked body until
they settled onto his smiling face.

           “Good mornin’, sweetheart,” he sweetly murmured as a grin danced on
his lips. 

Alaine blinked up at him several times then rubbed at her eyes with the heels
of her hands. “What are you doing?” she sleepily asked. 

           “Nothin’. Just admirin’ how beautiful you are.” 

She stared up into his glimmering green eyes and cocked her head to the side.
“You sure that's what you're doing?”

Dean chuckled at the skeptical tone in her voice. “Okay… maybe just a little
more than that.”

           “Yeah. I figured,” she smiled as she moved to raise her arms up over
her head. Scrunching up her nose, she let out a yawn and twisted her upper body
as she stretched her aching muscles. Just like Dean, Alaine's entire body felt
sore but it wasn't only because she had been thrown around by a ghost. Last
night’s mind-blowing sex had drained her of her energy and strength. They had
been intimate with each other not once, but twice and it had been absolutely
exhilarating. They had reveled in the moment of sheer ecstasy as their bodies
pushed one another's past its limits. For the second time in her life, Alaine
had been able to experience what climaxing felt like.  The powerful sensation
had been delivered by the same man who had taken away her innocence but unlike
before, the several mind-numbing orgasms that had repeatedly torn through her
body had been overpoweringly intense. Every thrust of his hips into hers had
sent pulsing waves of  explosive pleasure through her very veins and had
transported her mind into another dimension of inexplicable satisfaction. To
her, it felt as if their souls had completely merged into one as their bodies
intertwined with one another. She felt things she hadn't known were even
possible to feel and it opened up her mind to the world of sexuality. It
awakened within her a part of her that had laid dormant for so long. With just
the touch of his hands, he had brought her libido to life.

Leaning in, Dean nuzzled his face into her neck and pressed his lips to the
base of her throat.

           “Dean,” she breathed as she closed her eyes and her body relaxed
into the bed. 

He swirled the tip of his tongue against the steady beating of her pulse and
let out a deep exhale. His warm breath washed over her as he traced his mouth
down to her clavicle and his teeth grazed her skin. Spreading her knees apart
with his hand, he moved in between her legs as he kissed his way down her
chest. She let out an involuntary moan as he rocked his pelvis into her and his
now fully erect shaft rubbed up against her sensitive pearl. Her hands gripped
onto his lean shoulders as her body quivered under his touch and just as Dean
was readying himself to slide into her tight core, a sudden sharp knock came to
the motel room door which followed after the sound of a male voice calling out
Alaine's name. With a grunt of annoyance, he collapsed onto her. You gotta be
friggin’ kiddin’ me.

           “Alaine,” Sam called from outside. “Are you up?”

Alaine let out a small chuckle as he buried his face into the crook of her
neck.“Yeah,” she spoke up loudly. “What is it?”

           “Uh – is Dean with you?

           “What do you want, Sam?” Dean irritably replied to his brother, his
voice coming out slightly muffled.

           “Sorry for, um – disturbing you,” Sam called out. “We have to head
back to the Bunker. Cas just called and he needs us there.”

Dean groaned. “What? Now?”

           “Yeah, now.”

          “What the hell does he want?”
       
           “All he said was that he had some important information he needed to
give us,” Sam replied. “I'll, uh – I'll wait for you guys to get ready.”

Dean cursed under his breath as he rolled off of Alaine and sprawled out on the
bed. He laid there for a short moment before moving to sit upright. Swinging
his legs over the edge of the mattress, he stood on his feet. He stretched out
his arms and Alaine watched as the beautifully toned muscles of his back
tightened and flexed. It was a breathtaking sight to see him naked in all of
his perfect glory. He lazily padded over towards the foot of the bed and
collected his underwear from the floor. As he stepped his feet through them and
slipped them halfway up his thighs, his eyes landed on the fervent expression
of Alaine's face. He glanced down and noticed what it was that she was so
hungrily staring at. He cleared his throat as a seductive smirk tugged at the
corners of his lips. 

           “Just say the word and I'll climb back into this bed with you,” he
offered, his gruff voiced rumbling in his chest with salacious desire as her
eyes broke away from his rock hard erection to gaze into his smoldering
countenance.

A sharp electrifying current surged through her veins that set her insides on
fire. Without uttering a single syllable, Alaine abruptly sat upright and
crawled her way across the bed to where Dean stood. Kneeling on the mattress,
she flung her arms around his neck and pressed herself up against his bare skin
as she crashed her lips to his and sucked all of the air out of his lungs with
an intoxicating kiss. Dean screwed his eyes shut as a grunt vibrated in his
throat and traveled its way up his vocal cords to escape through his mouth. He
leaned forward and stretched out his arms to plant his hands flat on the bed as
Alaine slowly leaned back and stretched herself across the mattress. Hovering
over her, he positioned himself in between her legs and with a single thrust of
his hips, he effortlessly slipped inside of her. Alaine's arms untangled
themselves from around his neck as her hands clamped down onto the sides of his
back and the sounds of her soft moans filled the air as he rocked into her over
and over again.


  
                                                                               
                               *     *     *     *     *



           It was close to one in the morning when the Impala rolled into the
underground garage of the Bunker. The fourteen hour drive from Detroit had been
not only an exhausting one, but a very unusual one as well. Alaine had been
sitting in the back seat as usual as Sam and Dean sat together in the front. It
had been fairly quiet for most of the drive on account of everyone being too
spent to even engage in simple conversations. Taking advantage of the silence,
every now and again Dean’s gaze would break away from the road in front of him
to peek up into the rearview mirror. He’d surreptitiously glance at Alaine as
she sat with her back pressed up against the car door with her legs
outstretched on the seats. After the third glance, Sam picked up on it and
smiled softly to himself as his brother continued to secretly admire her. The
atmosphere around them had felt a little tense, as if there were a number of
unspoken words floating around in the air between Dean and Alaine. Sam had put
two and two together and figured out why that was and the fact that Dean had
spent the night in her motel room had made his assumptions all the more clear.
It only made sense that the two of them were obviously experiencing post-sex
awkwardness. The secretive stares, the deafening silence, those things were a
definite giveaway. For the remainder of the drive back home, Sam sat back and
quietly watched the hilarious ordeal, making a mental note to tease his brother
about it later. 

When Dean parked the Impala in its usual place, Sam and Alaine wasted no time
in clambering out to gather their belongings from the trunk. Once Sam had
grabbed up his duffel bag, he turned to her with a smile and wished her a
goodnight before walking off towards the garage’s exit to enter into the
Bunker’s living quarters. 

Letting out a heavy sigh, Alaine reached down to grab up her own bag as Dean
turned the engine over and climbed out of the car. He slammed the car door shut
and let out a small huff as he rubbed at his neck; he was in desperate need of
a hot shower to soothe his aching muscles. Turning his head, he glanced over at
Alaine. His eyes settled over her flawless face and from within his chest he
could feel his heart begin to rapidly beat against his rib cage. For the first
time in his life, he was absolutely nervous. There hadn't ever been a moment
where after sex the woman stayed around longer than what she needed to. It had
always been a get in-get out kind of thing where after doing the deed, they
would both part ways, but now, things were the complete opposite. Dean and
Alaine lived together and on top of that, there was a strong emotional
attachment from both ends which contributed to the awkwardness that had settled
around them. Neither one of them knew what to do next. For Dean, it was bad
enough that as he was staring at her, all he could envision were the explicit
and evocative images of her ravishing, unclothed body trembling beneath him,
but to make matters worse, he was still able to vividly feel the softness of
her slender fingers trailing over every inch of his skin which was now
beginning to drive him insane with longing. He didn't want for the soul-
riveting moment they had shared to end right there, he wanted it to last. He
wanted to see if it would lead them down a different path, if it would grow
into something far more greater than the friendship that they already had.
Dating wasn't something Dean had ever been good at. He wasn't really romantic
or open about his emotions which were some of the basic requirements of a
relationship. To his justification, he had never been able to fully grasp the
idea of it because of the sole fact that he had never experienced what being in
love felt like. Lisa had been a trial and error. At the time, he had cared
deeply for her and wholeheartedly wished for it to work, but there had been so
many factors that played into the unraveling of their relationship. He was a
Hunter and she had been a plain single mother with no knowledge of the dark
secrets he held. Although Dean had truly wanted to be with Lisa, his many
reasons to let her go had outweighed his desire to stay and so ultimately, he
chose to leave it all behind. He had made that decision once and had tried to
make it again just the night before but ended up finding that this time around,
it was impossible for him to walk away. Whether he admitted it to himself or
not, Dean needed to encounter the liberating feeling of loving and being loved
by someone and there was only one woman he secretly wanted to experience it all
with, and that woman was Alaine Ventura.

After she had gathered her things from inside of the trunk, Dean stood idly by
and watched as she left the garage and made her way into the Bunker. He
remained where he was standing for several long minutes, taking the time to
organize his thoughts before he retrieved his own belongings from the car and
made his way inside. Once he had taken a shower and stored away all of his
clothes and weapons back into his room, he then headed over towards the kitchen
to get a bite to eat. He grabbed up a loaf of bread along with some other
ingredients he needed in order to make himself a sandwich and sat himself down
at the table. As he prepared his small meal, he glanced up at the wall clock
and saw that it was a little over two A.M. He assumed that everyone else had to
be utterly spent from exhaustion and that by now they would probably be fast
asleep in their own beds. He let out a small sigh as he grabbed up his finished
sandwich from the paper plate and propped up his elbows onto the tabletop.
Taking a bite, he closed his eyes and relaxed his shoulders as he slowly
chewed. After swallowing his food several seconds later, he went to take
another bite when suddenly, his sandwich was taken out of his hands. His eyes
snapped open and he glanced up to see that Sam standing at the edge of the
table, dressed into a pair of flannel pajamas and a white henley as a smirk
played on his lips.

           “What the hell, man,” Dean irritably snapped at his brother. “Give
it back.”

Ignoring his command, Sam brought the sandwich up to his mouth and bit into it.
“So,” he spoke as he chewed. “I’m guessing you took my advice after all.”

Dean glared at him as he reached out a hand to snatch his sandwich back from
his brother’s clutches. “What are you talkin’ about?”

           “You and Alaine,” Sam responded with a smile as he settled himself
into the seat adjacent from him and propped up his arms onto the table. “I'm
surprised that you actually listened to me.”

Dean laughed dryly as a small grin formed on his face. “Well, I really hate to
say it, Sammy, but… You were right.”

           “What?” he blurted out in disbelief as his eyes went wide with
astonishment. “Did you seriously just admit that out loud?”

           “Yeah,” Dean responded as he took a large bite out of his sandwich.
“But don't let it get to your head, alright? You just made me realize some
stuff, that's it.”

           “Dude, this is great, it really is.” 

           “It ain't that much of a big deal, Sam.” 

           “Seriously?” he chuckled in response. “You're probably not trying to
show it but I know for a fact that you're pretty happy about it. I mean, come
on. I remember how crazy you were about her when we were kids. You hated her at
first, but once you got to know her, it was like you two were attached at the
hip. Wherever she went, you were right there with her.”

A image of a young Alaine had suddenly flashed through Dean’s mind, causing for
his heart to flutter inside of his chest. 

           “I also remember how messed up you were when she left,” Sam went on
to continue. “You didn't act like yourself for weeks, you even begged dad to
find her and when he said no, you went out and tried to look for her on your
own. I don't know what made you give up all of a sudden.”

           “I gave up ‘cause I knew I wasn’t gonna find her,” Dean muttered as
he dropped his sandwich down onto the paper plate. “I went after her blind
without any clues or leads. I was relyin’ on my gut feelin’. It kept tellin’ me
I was gettin’ close and every time I believed it, it just turned into another
hopeless attempt of a stupid teenage boy tryin’ to find someone who didn't want
to be found. After I realized I was wastin’ my time, I just stopped
altogether.”

Sam smiled. “Even after you stopped, did a part of you still hope to see her
again?”

           “To be honest, I did,” Dean admitted with a sigh. “I never really
forgot about her. It wasn't til years later that memories of her started to
slowly fade away and now that I think about it, it was around the time I hit my
mid twenties where I kinda just stopped thinkin’ about her.”

           “So, up until a few months ago, you had completely forgotten about
who she was?” 

           “Uh – sounds about right.”

           “Well, how does it feel to finally have her back?” Sam asked. 

           “How does it feel?” Dean laughed softly. “I don't know, man. I'm
still tryin’ to figure this thing out.”

           “I see. Just make sure you don't screw it up,” Sam spoke with a
grin. “I'm pretty sure she'll kill you if you do.”

Dean let out a chuckle as he turned in his seat and rose to his feet. “Yeah, no
kiddin’ – guess I should stay on my A-game, huh?” 

           “You definitely should,” Sam laughed as he watched his brother walk
over towards the fridge to retrieve a couple of beers. They had sat together in
the kitchen for a little while until Dean checked the time and saw that it was
nearing three A.M. After choosing to call it a night, Dean tiredly made his way
through the Bunker on over to his room to crawl into his comfy bed and fall
asleep but as he approached his door, he came to a halt. As before, a sudden
feeling of unbearable yearning came over him as his mind began to swirl with
thoughts of Alaine. He found himself moving past his room and continuing to
walk along the hallway as his legs carried him over to where her bedroom was
located. He stood there momentarily, staring at the chrome number 28 as he
mustered up the confidence to reach for the doorknob and twisted it. Gently
pushing the door open, he peaked inside the dimly lit room and smiled softly to
himself when his eyes landed upon the snuggled up bundle underneath the covers
in the center of the bed. Just as he was about to take a step inside, her body
shifted as her head lifted off of the pillow to look over in the direction in
where he was now frozen in place. 

           “Dean,” she softly called out as her eyes met his. 

           “Sorry... I didn't mean to wake you.”

A small smile swept across her face as she propped herself up onto her elbows,
the movement causing her long hair to flow down her shoulders in waves. “It's
alright, I wasn't asleep.” 

Dean swallowed. “Oh – okay, good.”

           “Did you need something?” she asked, a hint of wonder audible in her
gentle tone as she watched his expression shift into something she couldn't
quite read. 

He remained where he was, his feet planted firmly on the ground as he held her
gaze, his eyes never leaving her face. It wasn't until a few seconds later that
he slowly moved from where he stood to walk into the room and shut the door
behind him. 

           “There's somethin’ I came in here for,” he spoke up as he slowly
stalked his way over to her bed.

Alaine's heart began to palpitate wildly. “And what would that be?”

From just a few feet away, Dean could clearly feel the fervent longing that
radiated off of her in pulsing waves. It was strong enough to send a sharp
current of electricity shooting down his spine and make every single nerve
within his body tremble with unbearable desire. As he now stood at the edge of
her bed, Alaine pulled the covers away from her body and moved across the
mattress until she was sitting back on her heels directly in front of him. Her
eyes were fixated onto his smoldering countenance as she quietly reveled in the
intensity of his fierce stare. 

           “What did you come for?” she asked once more as her soft gaze
searched his. 

           “You,” he spoke with a low growl.  As the word slipped past his
lips, his hands had reached down to grasp onto the hem of his black tee and
with one swift motion, he pulled it up over his head and tossed it down onto
the floor. 

She attempted to utter his name but had been cut off short by his mesmerizing
aquatic scent engulfing her senses as he leaned down and pressed his enticing
mouth to hers. The gentleness of the force he exerted had been enough to leave
her gasping for breath as it sucked the air right out of her lungs and left her
feeling dazed. Taking advantage of the moment, Dean slipped his tongue past her
lips and Alaine's body reflexively weakened as his arm swept around her back to
grasp onto her tightly. He pulled her up onto her knees and pressed her against
his chest as her hands gripped onto the firm muscles of his biceps. As their
lips passionately overlapped each other's, their fingers began to explore one
another's bodies. Dean’s free hand had clasped onto her shoulder and slowly
slid the strap of her tank-top down as her fingers trailed across the smooth
flesh of his chest and abdomen. Breaking the kiss, he untangled his arm from
around her back and cupped her face into his palm as he lowered his head and
pressed his mouth to the base of her throat. A small shiver coursed through her
body as his lips kissed their way across her left shoulder and down to her
chest. When he stopped just at the part where the fabric of her tank-top met
her skin, his fingers moved to pull it down but he had been abruptly stopped by
Alaine's hand firmly gripping onto his wrist. Confused, he pulled back to get a
look at her face and had been caught by utter surprise when his eyes focused
onto her scorching gaze. There was a look in her amber irises that he had never
seen before, a wild stare that expressed salacious carnal desire and it riveted
him to the core. As he gazed into her hungry countenance, Alaine pulled his
hand away and placed it to rest by his side as she moved back to sit on her
heels once more and her fingers traced around the waistline of his pajamas. She
left Dean guessing for several excruciatingly-long seconds as to what she would
do next before she yanked them down to his ankles. The muscle in his jaw
tightened as her eyes settled onto the sight of his bulging erection straining
underneath the fabric of his boxer briefs. Her tongue darted out of her mouth
to moisten her lips as her hand drifted towards his center and flattened over
his throbbing cock. She let out a small gasp and lifted her gaze to look up
into his face as she felt the muscle twitch against her palm. The desperate
hunger that burned wildly inside of him reflected in the way his green irises
intensely stared down at her. He wanted to have his way with her right then and
there but there was a part of him that was holding back from taking over. He
was naturally a dominant man and when it came to sex, he thrived off of having
complete control. He was never one to sit back and let a woman do all the work
although he had always fantasized of the day someone would come along and rock
his world in all the right places. Up until now, the only issue had been that
he had never found the right woman who he felt comfortable enough with to be
able to let himself go. It was all about casual sex and he didn't want someone
he'd never come across again to see the more intimate side of him. But now, all
of that changed. It wasn't about casual sex anymore, it was now solely about
sharing himself with the only woman he’s ever truly wanted. He no longer
desired to feel the rush of another’s touch for he finally had her and that was
all that he needed. 

Taking in a deep breath, Alaine slowly moved her hand away from his erection to
hook her fingers under the waistline of his boxer briefs. She hesitated for a
moment, her eyes drifting up to look into his smoldering countenance as if for
permission. Dean gazed down at her unsure expression and let his hand tangle
itself into the soft locks of her hair as he gently rubbed her scalp with his
fingertips. 

           “It's alright,” he softly reassured as he stared into her eyes. “You
don't have to do it.” 

Alaine blinked up at him. “I know,” she murmured. “It's just… I've never done
this before.”

A small comforting smile tugged at the corners of his lips. “And that's okay,
it really is. This is about what you want. I won't force you if you're not
feelin’ sure about it.” 

Alaine sat for a moment and thought. There were so many things she hadn’t done
or experienced when it came to sex for it was only the day before that she had
finally been intimate again after nineteen long years. She was hesitant to do
certain things that she knew she wanted to do because she didn't want to
displease him. She knew that he had all of the knowledge and experience and
that sole fact was what kept her bouncing back and forth between the thought of
whether or not she should let herself go. Although she was absolutely sure of
what she wanted, she didn't know if she could meet whatever expectations Dean
had. She couldn't compare herself to all of the other women he had ever been
with because the majority of them knew what they were doing. Her on the other
hand, she was new to all of it. Yes, she hadn't been a virgin but when it came
to the experience, she pretty much still considered herself as one. She had a
general idea of how things were supposed to go, but what she didn't know were
the steps that were taken in between. There was only one way for her to learn
and that was to give it a shot. It was time for her to discard her fears and
insecurities, it was time for her to break out of her shell and show him
exactly what he had been missing for nineteen years. 

Giving herself the boost of confidence that she needed, she let out a small
exhale and spoke. “You're right. It's about what I want and what I want is
you.” 

           “Then don't hold back,” Dean murmured, his gravelly voice heavy with
fervent need. “I'm all yours.” 

At the sound of those words, something inside of Alaine shifted. It was as if
another side of her had been awoken and Dean had noticed it in the way her eyes
dilated and her posture changed. He was looking down at her and what he saw
staring back up at him was the face of a woman who burned with uncontrollable
yearning. 

Tearing her gaze away, Alaine focused her attention onto the throbbing bulge in
front of her as she leaned in and softly pressed her lips to his navel. A small
shudder ran down his spine at the feel of her hands grasping onto the sides of
his hips as her teeth softly nipped at his skin. The desperation that had been
coursing through his body now began to grow out of control as he gripped the
back of her head into his hand and softly squeezed. He watched her lick and
bite her way across his stomach until she reached the waistline of his
underwear. For a moment, he held his breath in anticipation and waited for her
to make her next move, but after several long seconds, nothing happened. A
single question had crossed his mind as Alaine pulled away and when her face
slowly lifted to look up at him with a seductive smirk playing on her lips, his
thought had been confirmed. She was teasing him. The sudden urge to just tear
off her clothes and fuck her senseless came over him and it took every bit of
self restraint that he had to hold himself back from taking over. He wanted her
and with every passing second it became more and more difficult for him to
control himself. Letting out a shaky deep breath, he closed his eyes and
relaxed his tense muscles as he fought to subdue the dominant side of him.
Noting that he wasn't looking at her, Alaine took the moment to catch him off
guard. With one swift motion, she tugged his boxer-briefs halfway down the
length of his thick thighs and sprung him free. She watched as his eyes flew
open and his surprised gaze settled onto her smiling face. 

            “Alaine,” he growled, his voice straining with insatiable hunger.

She momentarily held his intense stare until her eyes traveled all the way down
his naked body and rested over the sight of his rock hard erection. She
intently study its breathtaking beauty before slowly reaching out a hand to
touch him. Dean clenched his jaw in anticipation as he watched her fingers
hover over him and before he could brace himself, the base of his shaft was
softly gripped into the softness of her palm. He let out a sharp exhale as her
gentle touch sent a violent shock down his spine and every nerve within his
body twitched with indescribable yearning. For several long seconds, Alaine
simply held on to him. The way the thickness of his length fit into her small
hand, the feel of her soft skin, the slight pressure of her grasp around his
rigid flesh, it was just all too much for him to bare. It took him every ounce
of inner strength that he had to hold himself back from making any sound, but
as her hold suddenly tightened and her hand slowly glided up the length of his
shaft, he found himself breathlessly moaning her name. Her eyes snapped up to
look into his face and what she saw had shocked her to the core. His plump lips
were parted into a small pout as his thin brows were slightly furrowed and his
eyes fiercely gazed down at her with wild desperation reflecting through his
green irises. He looked as if he was unraveling at the seams and Alaine reveled
in the fact that she was the reason why. She was the one making him feel that
way and the thought of that aroused her even further. The corners of her lips
slowly curled up into a small smirk as she tightened her grip and stroked the
length of his shaft once more, this time her fingers squeezing around the crown
of his erection. Dean let out an involuntarily grunt as the pulsing heat that
had been brewing deep within his core spread all throughout his body and numbed
his senses. He felt her repeat the up and down motion a few more times before
she settled her hand back around the base of his shaft. She broke his intense
gaze to stare at the throbbing flesh in her grasp and slowly licked her lips.
His skin was now beginning to prickle with anticipation as he watched her inch
her way closer to him. As before, he attempted to brace himself for what was to
come but without so much as a warning, Alaine had lowered her head to wrap her
lips around the tip of his erection and sucked him into her mouth. The
unexpected action caused for Dean’s breath to hitch in his throat as his other
hand gripped onto her shoulder. He tightened his hold on her hair and watched
in amazement as she slowly moved down the rest of his length until she had
effortlessly taken in every single inch. Clutching onto her, he took the
advantage of her position to hold her head immobile as he relished the
sensation of electrifying pleasure that pulsed through every nerve in his body,
but little did he know that she wasn't planning on letting him savor it for
long. At that moment, Alaine's eyes softly flickered up to his face and just as
his burning gaze locked onto hers, she pulled back, letting his cock slip out
with painful ease. The sound of a strangled groan escaped Dean as his eyes
screwed shut and his hips flexed forward at the absence of her warm mouth. She
sat there and watched him for several unbearably-long seconds as his chest
heaved with every deep breath he took. She marveled at the surreal beauty of
the man, she couldn't believe just how perfect he was. She let herself enjoy
the sight of his body softly writhing with desire as the knowledge of the
effect she had on him excited her all the more. Deciding she had let enough
time go by, Alaine gripped him hard, placed her lips around him once more and
tentatively sucked. As a reflex, Dean fisted her hair, his jaw tightly
clenching as he cursed through gritted teeth and opened his eyes to look down
at her. She began to softly bob her head as her mouth clamped down on him and
her tongue teasingly swirled around the crown of his shaft. She went to take a
quick glance at his face but found herself pinned by the force of his intense
gaze. Unable to now break eye contact, she sucked harder, pulling him deeper
into her mouth until she was able to feel him at the back of her throat. Biting
onto his bottom lip, Dean grunted loudly and Alaine released her hold of him to
press her hands flat against his thighs as she deep-throated his entire length.
He flexed his hips forward again but this time, he began to steadily fuck into
her mouth as the hand that had been gripping onto her shoulder moved to grasp
the back of her neck. Her eyes fixated onto him, Alaine praisingly watched his
beautiful features contort into an expression of sheer sexual ecstasy as his
mouth fell agape and the sound of a breathless moan escaped him. His
uncontrollable need for her was clearly displayed in the way he was falling
apart before her and that was enough to send her mind into a complete frenzy.
His breathing now became frantic as his core painfully tightened and every
nerve within his body twitched with agonizing hunger. By the way his muscles
visibly tensed, she knew that he was on the verge of coming undone and as his
hips continued to flex forward, she reflexively began to suck harder. The
sudden feel of her mouth tightening around him forced a strong, fervent groan
to rumble through his chest as he felt the familiar buildup begin to gradually
increase. He desperately craved for the satisfying release but wasn't no where
finished with her. As he felt his orgasm approaching, he began to slow his
thrusts but without any warning, Alaine's small hand wrapped around him,
pumping his length as her mouth tightly sucked onto the crown of his shaft.
Staring into her sweet, innocent-like face with his ferocious gaze, Dean let
out a deep growl as his legs instantly weakened. Reading into his body
language, she began to pump him faster, her wild desire to see him unravel
before her forcing a desperate moan to vibrate in her throat but just as he
neared his breaking point and came dangerously close to climaxing, his grip on
her hair and the back of her neck forcibly tightened.

            “Alaine, no.” 

Before she could tip him over the edge, Dean pulled his hips back, his cock
hastily slipping out of her mouth with a slight pop as he yanked her head up
and breathlessly stared down at her. Alaine let out a small gasp of surprise as
her eyes settled onto his face. His appearance was almost wild-like, his
nostrils flared as his fierce gaze focused onto her face and his chest heaved
with every erratic breath he took. If she thought he was intimidating before,
she now knew that the man was downright terrifying. His expression would come
off as frightening to others, but for Alaine, it was the exact opposite. It
aroused her in ways that she couldn't understand and made her yearning for him
grow tenfold. Reaching out a hand, Alaine went to grab hold of him once more
but had been instantly stopped by Dean’s grip on her hair tightening further.
She let out a small whimper as he pulled her head back and moved forward, his
other hand leaving the back of her neck to cup her jaw into its palm. He
intently stared at her for a few seconds before he released her face and let
his fingers softly trail across her clavicle until they brushed over her chest.
Alaine let out a shaky breath as his other hand moved from her hair to gently
grip onto the hem of her t-shirt. Raising her arms, she allowed for him to pull
the article of clothing up over her head and once she was sitting before him
bare chested, she watched the expression on his face harden as the sound of a
small groan vibrated through his chest. Foregoing his patience, Dean shoved her
back by her shoulders. She let out a surprised yelp as her back smacked against
the mattress and his dominating hands hastily moved to her waist. He forcibly
tugged off her sleep shorts along with her panties and threw the items onto the
ground as his scorching gaze settled onto the sight of her naked body sprawled
out in front of him. Lifting her head up, she glanced over at him as he grabbed
onto her ankles and yanked her across the bed until her ass was directly on the
edge of the mattress. She stared at him with wild hunger and watched as he
lowered his head and dipped his tongue into her navel. Reaching down, he spread
her legs apart and kissed his way across her flat stomach. He gently nipped at
her hip as he slowly got down onto his knees. Her eyes widened as his head
looked up to glance at her face and he flattened his hands over the inside of
her thighs to push her legs father apart. 

            “Dean,” she half whimpered in a voice that didn't quite sound like
her own.

Holding her uneasy gaze, he gently pressed a kiss to her left knee as his
fingernails raked across her skin. Alaine's body was now writhing with
anticipation as she knew very well what he was planning on doing. She laid
there and anxiously watched him kiss and bite along her thigh and just as he
hooked her legs onto his shoulders and moved in closer, the sound of another
small whimper escaped her. 
    
           “Dean-”

           “Shh,” he soothed as his hands cupped her breasts into its palms and
gently began to knead them with soft, rhythmic squeezes. “I know, baby. Just
breathe for me.” 

Just as Alaine thought of responding, Dean lowered his head once more to cover
her cleft with his mouth. A breathless gasp escaped her at the foreign
sensation of his warm, velvet tongue slowly caressing the small, sensitive
bundle of nerves. He took in a deep breath and softly groaned as he trailed a
hand down from her chest to grasp onto her hip. He expertly circled all around
her folds, relishing the sweet taste of her arousal that now coated his tongue
as her body sagged against the mattress. Closing her eyes, she bit back a moan.
She laid there, helpless and vulnerable as he licked and sucked. The feeling
was unworldly, it was like nothing she had ever experienced before. The way his
tongue softly fluttered over her was enough to have her body climbing to
unimaginable highs. It was as if all of her senses had been magnified and as a
result she was able to feel everything at a heightened level. As his tongue
left her pearl to gently circle around her opening, Alaine lifted her head off
of the bed to gaze down at Dean and when their eyes locked, her breath hitched
in her throat. The sight of his face in between her thighs and his fierce
chartreuse irises staring right up at her had sent a violent shudder through
her body which left her softly trembling as he plunged his tongue inside of her
and tightened his grip on her waist. He watched her as her mouth fell open and
a broken moan escaped her. She threw her head back and clenched onto the sheets
with white-knuckle force as he licked into her, tasting her in slow, torturous
circles. The feeling was almost too much to bare and just as she was about to
hold back another moan, Dean’s other hand released her breast to travel down in
between her legs. Pulling his face away, he rimmed her slit and gently eased
his middle finger inside of her. Alaine’s back reflexively bowed as her walls
clenched around him and the sound of a strangled groan left her in a rush. 

            “God, you're perfect,” Dean praised, his gruff voice coated with
salacious fervor as he curved his finger upwards into a come-hither motion and
gently stroked over her sweet spot. He watched her legs softly begin to tremble
and with a low, fervent growl, he pulled out and pushed back into her with two
fingers. In response, she arched her back into him and let out a breathless
whimper as he slowly continued to stroke that tender spot inside of her. Her
walls tightened around his fingers and Dean knew by the way that her body began
to quiver that she was steadily approaching her breaking point. 

            “Dean,” she breathed, her head lifting off the bed once more to
gaze down at him with wide eyes. 

The sound of his name rolling off of her tongue in the form of a breathy moan
evoked a loud, desperate groan from deep within his chest as he abruptly
stopped and stood back on his feet. Glaring down at her, he tightly clenched
his jaw as he stepped out of his pajamas and kicked them to the side. He
hastily pulled his boxer-briefs down the rest of the length of his legs and
removed them. As he dropped them down onto the floor and kneeled onto the bed,
Alaine’s body slid upwards across the mattress to allow him room to move in
closer. She anxiously stared at him as he flattened his palms over her thighs
and pushed her legs further apart. He locked his scorching gaze onto her
flustered face and without warning, slammed his hips forward. The shock of the
sudden penetration forced Alaine to cry out as he buried himself inside of her.
He was hard as stone and deep enough that she could feel him stretching her
past her own limits. The instant connection was startlingly intense.
Emotionally, physically, it was as if their bodies perfectly aligned with each
other. Every inch of him overwhelmingly filled her to the brim and she couldn't
help but feel completely taken. She clenched around him and moaned as she
relished the possessing feeling of him inside of her. He gave her a few brief
seconds to adjust to him before he slowly ground his hips against hers. A small
whimper escaped her as her eyes closed and her back bowed. Growling, Dean
gripped her tightly by her slim waist as he angled her up and slowly circled
his hips. 

            “Look at me,” he commanded as another cry of pleasure escaped her. 

Doing as she was told, her eyes softly fluttered open to settle back onto his
fierce countenance. A gasp escaped her as he fervidly gazed down into her face
and ground his hips once more, prodding as if to say Can you feel me? Can you
feel how hard I am for you? Unable to bear the overwhelming sensation that shot
up her spine and spread throughout her body like a wild-fire, Alaine cursed
loudly as she arched into him once more. The muscles of Dean’s biceps strained
as he slowly pulled his hips back until just the crown of his shaft remained
inside of her. The rigid tightening of his abdomen was the only warning she got
before he slammed himself back inside of her, hard. She cried out and his chest
rumbled with a deep growl. 

            “Shit, you feel so friggin’ good,” he groaned, tightening his hold
on her hips. Without a moment's pause, Dean pulled out once more and hurriedly
thrust back into her as she cried out yet again. 

           “Dean, please,” she brokenly spoke as she stared up into his face
through half-lidded eyes. 

Pursing his lips, he pulled back out of her. “Please what?”

She took in a shaky deep breath and just as she was about to speak, he slammed
forward again. 

           “Tell me what you want.”

           “You,” she moaned loudly. “Please, I want you.”

Dean leaned forward as he flattened his palms on the bed and with a deep grunt,
he began to vehemently pump into her. Alaine's small hands flew out and grasped
onto his waist as he nailed her hips to the mattress with wildly fierce
thrusts. Pleasure rippled through her, pulsing through every nerve as he
repeatedly slammed into her. The intense look they shared was enough to force
and orgasm to brew within Alaine like a dangerous storm as he relentlessly
pounded on. Feeling her walls begin to quiver around him, he leaned back as he
reached under her and in one swift motion, flipped her over onto her stomach.
He quickly grasped onto her waist, lifting her ass up into the air as he
hastily slammed his hips forward and forced out a scream from deep within her
lungs. 

            “Fuck,” he grunted as her walls squeezed down around him. He
screwed his eyes shut as he removed a hand from her waist to slip his fingers
into her hair at the nape Yanking her head back, he pulled her body up into a
kneeling position as the hand at her waist moved to curl around her torso. He
held her tightly to him as his fingers left her hair and softly cupped onto her
throat and with a strangled grunt, he pulled out and plunged back into her
dripping core. Alaine let out a sharp cry and arched her back as Dean nuzzled
his face into her neck and groaned, the seductive sound resonating loudly in
her right ear. He flexed his fingers against the skin of her abdomen as he
grabbed onto her and deliberately circled his hips. The feel of their bodies
pressed firmly against each other's, the prickling sensation of their flushed
skin touching, it was all beyond what words could possibly describe. For the
fourth time in a span of twenty-four hours, they felt as if they had become
one. It was as if their mind, body and souls had merged together to enhance and
magnify every pulsing wave of pleasure that coursed through their very veins.
For Dean, it almost felt like he was experiencing sex for the first time all
over again due to the astonishing fact that in all of his years of casual
hookups, no woman had ever been able to make him feel the way Alaine was making
him feel. It was something that was utterly new to him and the more he savored
it, the less he was able to restrain his inner self. As the force of his
thrusts increased, he began to feel every muscle in his body painfully tighten
with the overpowering sensation of his orgasm rapidly growing deep within his
core. He abruptly pulled back and slipped out of her as he dropped his forehead
onto her shoulder and attempted to regulate the accelerated beating of his
heart that hammered against his rib cage. He could feel the rapid flow of his
blood circulating throughout his entire body as his chest heaved with every
shaky breath he took. He paused for a few brief seconds, giving himself enough
time to regather his composure before he lifted his head off of her shoulder
and carefully eased himself back inside of her. The sensation of her walls
stretching to accommodate his size and then clenching back around him as he
buried himself to the hilt forced a shudder to rake through his body as he
tilted his head back and grunted loudly. Alaine felt the pressure of the crown
of his shaft pressing directly against her sweet spot and without thinking, she
began to slowly rock against him. Dean gasped, his fingers digging into her
stomach as she torturously circled her hips. She repeated the slow motion a few
times before her hand clamped down onto his forearm that was curled around her
torso and her body became limp in his hold. 

            “Dean,” she moaned softly as she rested her head against his
shoulder and closed her eyes. 

Gliding his hand up from her throat to place it over her cheek, he turned her
head as he brought his face down to hers and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. 

           “I got you, Lainey,” he murmured against her mouth as he
affectionately stroked his thumb across her jaw. He sucked onto her bottom lip,
kissing her deeply as he pulled his hips back and slipped out of her once more.
At the sudden absence of his cock inside of her, Alaine let out a small whimper
of protest as she broke the kiss to glance up into his face. Just as she was
about to plead for him not to stop, he abruptly pulled her off of the bed until
her feet were planted firmly on the floor. Unraveling his arm from around her
waist, he flattened his palm over her stomach and trailed his hand up her chest
as he pressed himself firmly against her. She softly moaned at the feel of his
erection digging into her back as his fingers began to travel all over her
body. He softly caressed her flushed skin as he pressed small kisses to her
shoulders. She relished the gentleness of his loving touch but it hadn't lasted
for too long as his hands abruptly turned her around so that she now faced him
directly. Her eyes settled onto his intense countenance as his palms clamped
down on her ass and tightly squeezed. 

           “Grab onto me,” he murmured. 

Taking heed, Alaine grasped onto his shoulders and with little to no effort,
Dean lifted her up in the air. They stared into each other's eyes, hunger
radiating off of them in suffocating waves. They stood that way for several
long, breathtaking seconds before he tightly clenched his jaw and slowly
lowered her onto his cock. As his shaft slipped through her entrance, her nails
dug into the lean muscle of his shoulders as her mouth fell open and her face
contorted with sheer satisfaction. Gripping tightly onto her hips, he shoved
the rest of himself inside of her before lifting her off of him and slamming
her back down onto him. She quickly wrapped her arms around his neck, moaning
as he repeated the excruciating motion over and over and over again until her
insides began to quiver and her breathing quickened. Feeling her walls
tightening around him, Dean let out a grunt as he angled her hips and slammed
her down as he thrust upwards. Her nails sunk into the skin of his nape as she
attempted to suppress a scream.

           “Don't hold back, baby,” he growled as he moved back over towards
the bed. Getting onto his knees, he lowered himself as he shoved her body into
the mattress and tightly gripped onto her ass. Still positioned in between her
legs, he pulled his hips back and pounded back into her. A loud whimper escaped
her as her fingernails raked across his shoulder blades, leaving small red
lines behind on his freckled back. Feeling himself on the verge of reaching his
peak, his breathing turned into breathless, urgent gasps as he battered into
her. The speed of his thrusts intensified as he relentlessly slammed his hips
forward. Releasing  his grip on her to flatten his hands on the bed on either
side of her shoulders, he lifted his upper body off of her and gazed down at
her face. He marveled at the captivating sight of her writhing with
indescribable pleasure beneath him as both of their bodies began to rapidly
climb. As if being able to sense each other's climaxes approaching, they locked
their eyes onto one another and held their fervid stares. Muttering a curse,
Dean angled himself and plunged harder into her as her walls clamped down
tighter around him. 

           “Come for me,” he gruffly commanded through a suppressed moan. 

His words were her undoing, tipping her over the precipice as her body
convulsed around him and she climaxed in a rush that left her sobbing his name.
Not being too far behind, Dean’s breathing became more erratic as the muscles
of his core painfully constricted. With two deep thrusts, a breathtaking
sensation of excruciating pleasure spiked through his body like adrenaline as
he reached his breaking point and with a loud, feral growl, he finally came
undone. His orgasm furiously tore into him, forcing an animalistic sound of
sheer ecstasy to rumble through his chest as his hips stalled and he emptied
himself inside of her. 

Alaine had been staring up at him the entire time. The sight of Dean coming had
utterly rendered her speechless. She had watched his beautiful unraveling and
now found herself gazing up at into his unfocused eyes with enthrallment. He
remained on top of her as he gradually came down from his orgasmic high, his
chest softly heaving with every steady breath he took. As she continued to
watch him, a sudden, uncontrollable urge to feel his skin underneath her
fingertips came over her. She slowly reached up and flattened her hand over his
bare chest. She held it there, silently reveling the sensation of his
thundering heart beating against her palm as his rigid body softly trembled
above her. It wasn't until several long seconds later that her slender
fingertips leisurely began to trail upwards. She lightly traced her nails
around his anti-possession tattoo before gliding her hand up to his clavicle.
When she reached the base of his throat, her fingers gently brushed across his
pulse as she moved to cup his jaw. Dean let out a shaky sigh, his muscles now
relaxing as his vision returned to normal. He settled his gaze onto her face
and quietly peered into her amber irises as her thumb swept around the curve of
his mouth. They stood that way for a short while, savoring the moment in
silence as they stared deeply into each other's eyes. For several minutes, the
only audible sounds throughout the enclosed space of her bedroom were that of
their steady breathing but as Dean’s gaze intently studied her gentle features,
he found himself softly grinning. 

           “What’s the smile for?” Alaine's voice quietly spoke up in question
from underneath him. 

Dean stood silent for a small moment before he responded. “Would you really
like to know?” 

           “Yes.”

He slowly lowered himself until he was supporting his weight onto his forearms
and his lips were mere inches away from hers. His eyes traveled all over her
face, admiring every single flawless detail. 

           “You're beautiful,” he murmured, a warm smile still tugging at the
corners of his mouth as he tucked an arm underneath her back and kissed her
softly. Curling it around her, he firmly pressed her to him as he carefully
rolled onto his side and wrapped her up into his strong embrace. He held her
tight and simply kissed her for minutes on end until his body began to crave
for more than just the taste of her lips and his erection had swelled inside of
her once more, ready to repeat the previous moment’s act of impassioned
lovemaking.
***** Chapter Ten *****
    At exactly five in the morning, Alaine's alarm had obnoxiously gone off,
indicating that it was time for her to jump out of bed and get ready to go out
on her routine morning run. With a heavy groan, she lifted her head up from the
pillow as her arm lazily outstretched towards the nightstand. She grabbed up
her cellphone and squinted as the blinding light from the screen shone directly
over her face.
With a simple swipe of her thumb, she silenced the incessant ringing and
tiredly dropped the phone onto the nightstand as she shoved her face back into
her pillow and sighed. She had gone to bed close to an hour ago and was in no
way mentally or physically energized to do anything that required a great deal
of effort.
As she lay there, deeply contemplating on whether or not she should drag
herself out of bed as she did every single morning, the sound of heavy
breathing came from beside her as the mattress dipped with the weight of Dean’s
body shifting around. She assumed that he had to still be asleep, but the
sudden feel of his warm, calloused hand settling over the small of her back had
declared otherwise. 

       “Hey,” his gruff voice groggily spoke up.

Turning her head, Alaine glanced over at him. The small lamp over on the desk
at the opposite end of the room cast a pale light that softly illuminated his
appealing features. He had been lying on his side with the covers draped over
the lower half of his body, leaving exposed to her view the smooth surface of
his toned abdomen and chest. Looking up into his glorious face, her eyes met
his tired gaze.

        “Hey,” she echoed, sweetly. “Sorry if the alarm woke you.” 

Dean’s lips softly curled up into a small smile. “It's alright. I was kind of
havin’ trouble sleepin’ anyway.” 

Sadly, Alaine had a solid assumption as to why that was. For quite some time,
she had been aware of the constant nightmares that tormented Dean in his sleep.
The first night she had ever witnessed the ordeal, it had been over three weeks
ago.


It was a late Friday night and they had decided upon quietly unwinding at home
instead of going out to a bar and being surrounded by a loud crowd of
intoxicated people. They started to stream a movie on his laptop but had fallen
asleep right in the middle of it. When Alaine had suddenly awoken an hour
later, it was to the sounds of Dean’s strangled grunts and groans. Disoriented,
she shot upright in the bed to turn on the light.
She hurriedly shuffled around to face him, but when her eyes landed upon his
anguished countenance, her expression instantly fell. In her mind, she had came
to the abrupt conclusion that something or someone had broken into the Bunker
and was now attacking him but she quickly came to realize that wasn't the case
at all. He was being attacked, but not physically. It was a mental and
psychological attack. Whatever was haunting Dean’s mind in secret was torturing
him in his sleep and she was now getting a firsthand glance at just how deep
his suffering truly went.
For a minute, she silently sat there with an ache in her heart as she watched
his defenseless body writhe as if it were in excruciating pain. She watched his
hands tightly ball up into fists at his sides as his head softly thrashed
around and his eyes flickered back and forth from behind his closed lids. She
watched how small beads of sweat damped his forehead and his moist shirt clung
to the skin of his chest. For a long moment, she didn't know what to do. She
thought of waking him, of pulling him out of his horrid dreams, and as his
agonized groans grew louder and his breathing became frantic, her hands had
suddenly clamped down onto his shoulders and before she could try to stop
herself, she was firmly shaking him awake.

        “Dean, wake up!”

It took a few tries of her urgently calling out his name for him to stir, but
after the third time, his eyes had snapped open. 

As a reflex, Dean’s body instantly stiffened up against the headboard as his
arms abruptly jutted out and swung at the air. Without being aware of it at
all, he had accidentally struck her in his wild, unconscious attempt to fight
off whatever had been tormenting him in his dream. 

With a sharp cry, Alaine's hands quickly pulled away from him as she cupped her
face into her palms and cursed in pain. His confused, unfocused gaze
frantically looked around him as his mind hastily adjusted to his surroundings.
When he finally had been able to register that he was inside of his room and
was safe in his own bed, his chest heaved with the force of a shaky, deep
breath of relief. He was still somewhat dazed, but as his eyes landed upon the
sight of Alaine sitting in front of him, hunched over in pain, he quickly came
back to reality. Immediately, he had shifted over towards her and grabbed onto
her forearms as he pulled her upper body upright. 

        “Alaine,” he rushed out, his trembling voice coated with worry as his
wide gaze settled over her face. 

The pain she felt was far too great for her to bare. As she tightly clutched
onto her nose, she let out a small groan as her glistening eyes met Dean’s. 

Cursing under his breath, his hands moved up to curl around her wrists as he
attempted to yank her hands away, but with a stubborn cry in protest, she
pulled back.

        “Come here,” he authoritatively demanded, tightening his grip.

She furiously shook her head in reluctance as she scooted away from him, but in
one swift motion, Dean’s hands released her wrists and hooked onto her waist as
he hauled her small frame into his lap and trapped her in his strong hold. She
yelped in surprise as he quickly wrapped an arm around her back and held her
immobile. 

        “Dammit. Let me see,” his hoarse voice commanded as his deeply
concerned gaze fixed onto her face once more and his other hand moved back up
to her wrist.

With tears brimming her eyes, she submissively obeyed his order and shakily
pulled her hands away to reveal the sight of a bloodied lip.

Dean took in a sharp intake of breath as his chest painfully tightened. “God…”

Alaine sat there in his lap, her hands hanging limply in between his legs as
his hand firmly cupped onto her cheek. His gaze scanned her entire face before
they slowly peered into her reddened irises.

        “Alaine,” he breathed out. 

        “You were having a nightmare,” she spoke up. “I didn’t know what to do.
I couldn't leave you that way-“

Dean’s jaw tightened as self-resentment began to swell inside of him. “It’s
okay,” he reassured. “You don't have to say anything.”

        “But—“

        “Don't,” he clipped. “Just don't… I hurt you and you’re tryin’ to
apologize for wakin’ me up.”

        “If I hadn’t—”

Dean’s expression shifted. “No. Don't you sit here and blame yourself, you hear
me?”

Alaine quietly peered into his stern eyes and slowly nodded her head. 

        “This wasn’t your fault,” he firmly spoke. 

        “It wasn’t yours, either.”

Dean let out a scoff. “Yeah? Why don't you say that to the busted lip I just
gave you.”

        “It's no big deal,” she murmured quietly

        “How can you say that?” he questioned in disbelief. “For fucks sake,
Alaine. You’re bleeding.”

        “Like that hasn’t happened before.”

Dean’s wide gaze intently stared into her golden irises. “This time I’m the
reason why.  It ain't the same as before. I hit you—”

        “Accidentally,” she interrupted. “You accidentally hit me because you
were disoriented. You forgot your surroundings.”

Dean bowed his head as he tightly clenched his jaw. 

        “Please don't hate yourself for this,” she softly said. “It really
wasn’t your fault.”

He stood quiet for several long seconds before looking up at her once more.
“Does it hurt?”

        “Yeah.”

Letting go of her cheek, Dean slowly brought his fingers up to her nose. He
hesitated for a moment, his eyes quietly asking her for permission before he
gently gripped the cartilage between his index finger and thumb. With extreme
caution and ease, he squeezed down and Alaine's eyes instantly screwed shut as
she hissed in pain. After a few seconds of feeling around, he pulled his hand
away and brought it down to her mouth to examine the open cut on the flesh of
her bottom lip. 

        “So?” she asked, quietly. “What's the damage looking like?”

With a deep sigh, Dean traced his thumb across her chin as he cupped her jaw
into his palm. “Your nose isn't broken and your lip won't need any stitches.”

Alaine let out a breath of relief. “Whew. I was so sure I was gonna need some
sort of plastic surgery after this. Remind me to never pick a fight with you.”

Dean let out a dry laugh, shaking his head as the corner of his mouth quirked
up into a smile. 

          “You’re an idiot, you know that?”

Alaine raised a brow in question as she cocked her head to the side. “What's
that supposed to mean?”

        “I damn near knocked your teeth right out of your mouth yet you’re
makin’ jokes about it.”

        “Well, I’m sure as hell not gonna cry about it,” she half chuckled. “
I'm not as fragile as you think, I can handle a few punches.”

He intently gazed into her eyes for a moment before speaking up once more. “You
really are somethin’ special.”

With a small, half grin, Alaine affectionately patted his cheek. “As you love
telling me. Now, I think you should clean me up before I bleed out all over you
and your bed.”

Dean momentarily stared at her. “Right. I’ll, uh–I’ll get right to that.”  

After the events of that night, Alaine found herself feeling closer to him than
before and that was because she had been able to see him in such a vulnerable
state while all of his guards were down. It was a sight that pulled at her
heart strings because she knew very well just how painful it was to be kept up
at all hours of the night by the haunting memories of the past. It was
something that never really went away, it always lingered at the back of her
mind, lying in wait to resurface once more.
To her luck, it had been months since she had experienced a nightmare. Every
night that she went to sleep, she silently hoped it wouldn't be the night where
the tormenting memories of her loved ones would decide to creep out and haunt
her in her dreams. There were times in the past where she had forced herself to
stay in awake for the fear of falling asleep and dreaming of either her father
or her brother and although she hated her mother, memories of her still existed
deep within her subconscious, memories that occasionally would surface in her
dreams and torment her.
She understood perfectly well just how hard it was for Dean because she had
been through it herself. The blood, sweat and tears, the nightmares, the self-
loathing, the self-hatred, the desire to self-sacrifice for the sake of the
safety of her loved ones. It was almost as if her life mimicked his in its own
cruel way. She didn't understand why, but the one thing she did know was that
it made her love him all the more. Through all the pain, suffering and torment,
she loved him because she knew that's what he needed, because that’s what she
truly wanted to do, to give him what he deserved which was selfless,
unconditional love. 

With a look of understanding, Alaine softly spoke up. “Well, you should still
try to get some sort of rest.”

        “You plannin’ on goin’ out for a run today?” he asked from beside her.

        “I was, but I'm second guessing that idea. I'm way too tired to get out
of bed right now.”

        “So why don't you just stay right here with me, then?” he offered as he
slowly began to trail his hand down her spine. “I’d rather you keep me the
company.”

Alaine smiled softly as a playful expression came across her face. “Choose
between you and exercise? What do you think I’m gonna go with?”  

With a small, weary chuckle, Dean scooted his body closer to hers. Momentarily
moving his hand away from her back, he tugged the covers down the length of
their bodies until they were both completely exposed. “Obviously me.”

The rich sound of his exhausted voice speaking out to her was like music to her
ears. It was calming and arousing all at the same time. She sighed in content
and closed her eyes as his fingertips traced gentle circles across the skin of
her bare shoulders. 

Pressing his lips against her temple, he took in a deep breath before he spoke
once more in a low, raspy tone. 

        “I can't go another minute without bein’ buried deep inside of you.”

Alaine quietly moaned, the sound of his words forcing her blood to pool in her
stomach  as he moved closer to her until his prominent erection was pressing
against her thigh as a clear declaration of his fervent need to ravish her
body. She softly gasped as his hand slid down to her backside and gripped her
hard. With a small groan, Dean lowered his head and gently nipped at her
shoulder as he pushed his right knee in between her legs until he was partially
lying across her back. 

        “Dean,” she breathlessly groaned. “We went to bed less than hour ago.
How can you possibly have the energy for sex right now?” 

Gathering her long hair and tossing it over her right shoulder, he lowered his
head once more and began to trail feather light kisses across her neck as he
ground his hips against her bare ass.

       “Seeing you lyin’ next to me like this is more than enough to get me
rock hard.”  

Alaine let out a hushed moan as his fingers skimmed past her waist and glided
over her wide hip. He slowly trailed them down to her right thigh before
settling his hand over the back of her knee and pushing it up. Shifting so he
was between her legs, Dean stretched himself across the length of her bare back
and nuzzled her hair. 

        “I need you so friggin’ bad, sweetheart,” he growled into her ear as he
leisurely slipped his hand in between her thighs to gently brush his fingertips
along her folds. 

His gravelly voice was intoxicating, his seductive words heady and full of
scorching desire. Alaine didn’t have much of a choice other than to give in to
his subtle demands. Even though she was tired and wanted nothing more than to
go back to sleep, her now fervid craving to feel him rocking those sweet hips
of his into her was too strong for her to repress so without thinking twice,
she spread her legs for him and permitted him to do with her as he so hungrily
pleased.
******
    It was close to twelve in the afternoon when Alaine lazily strolled into
the operations room still dressed into her sleep shorts and t-shirt with her
long, wavy hair pulled back into a loose, messy bun. Sam had been sitting at
the large table with a turkey and cheese sandwich within his clutches as he
intently stared at his computer screen all the while Dean sat beside him,
chowing down on a homemade cheeseburger and talking about something relevant to
what was displayed across his brother’s laptop. When Alaine walked in, both
Hunters paused their conversation and silently watched her make her way over
towards the table as she carried bowl of oatmeal in one hand and a glass of
orange juice in the other. 

        “Mornin’ there, sunshine,” Dean playfully called out, a smirk softly
playing on his lips as he moved to take a bite out of his burger. 

Alaine set her breakfast down onto the table before she pulled out a chair and
plopped down into the seat. 

        “Good to see you’re among the living,” Sam greeted with a grin. 

Alaine reached for the spoon inside of her bowl and mixed around its contents.
“I kind of overslept,” she tiredly stated.

        “Kind of?” Sam chuckled as he glanced at the time on his wristwatch.
“It's 11:43.” 

        “Yeah. Someone kept me up ‘til late this morning,” she hinted, her eyes
flickering up from her oatmeal to look over at Dean who had been staring at her
intently with a smile dancing in his eyes. Alaine cast him a teasing glance
that forced out a small chocking sound from deep inside of his throat as he
dropped his burger onto his plate and quickly reached for his opened beer
bottle.

        “I didn't even get to go out on my morning run,” she finished off,
looked away slowly and shoving her spoon into her mouth. 

Sam looked at Dean then at Alaine then back at Dean again before a smile tugged
at the corners of his mouth. “Ah, I see.”

Dean glanced over at his brother and saw that he was staring at him with a
knowing expression on his face. 

        “What?” he clipped after taking a large swig of his beer and clearing
his throat.

With a soft chuckle, Sam returned his gaze to the screen of his laptop.
“Nothing.”

After eating a few spoonful's of her oatmeal, Alaine turned her attention over
towards Sam. 

        “So,” she spoke up as she reached for her glass of orange juice.
“When's your friend Cas coming by?”

Taking a bite out of his sandwich, Sam set it back down onto the paper plate
and wiped the corners of his mouth on a napkin. “He should be coming soon. He
never really gives us a time.” 

        “Well, I ain't plannin’ on sittin’ around all day til he gets here,”
Dean objected as he went to reach for his burger. 

Almost as if on cue, the sound of the Bunker’s iron door opening and slamming
shut echoed loudly around them. All three Hunters simultaneously glanced up to
the balcony to see a small, formal man dressed into a tan colored trench coat
with a plain white button down and black slacks approaching the railing of the
staircase. 

        “Speakin’ of the devil,” Dean said, pushing away his plate as he leaned
back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. “Look who decided to
show up early.”

        “I’ll never be able to fully understand the use of that reference,”
Castiel spoke out as he trod down the steps. He steadily made his way over
towards the table and as he approached, his eyes immediately landed on Alaine. 

        “Cas,” Sam said, turning to face him as he outstretched a hand and
motioned over towards her to introduce her. “This is Alaine Ventura. Hunter and
childhood friend.”

        “It's nice to meet you,” he addressed in a monotonous tone.

Alaine shifted slightly in her seat to stare at him head-on. Her eyes raked his
subtle appearance before she spoke up. 

        “Well, I'll be damned,” she grinned softly. “Looking at you, I'd never
in a million years guess that you're an angel.”

Castiel awkwardly returned her smile. “It's, uh... our way of blending in with
humanity. The less obvious we are, the better.”

From the opposite side of the table, Dean sternly spoke up, grabbing everyone’s
attention. 

“Now that you're here, could you tell us why the hell we had to haul ass from
Detroit?” 

Castiel gazed over at Dean and cocked his head slightly as he narrowed his eyes
in thought. “I'm sensing you're mad.” 

        “You got that damn right,” Dean bitterly remarked. “You team up with
Sam on some secret mission and keep me out of the loop the entire time while
I'm sittin’ around waitin’ for you to give me a freakin’ call.” 

        “It was Sam's idea not to speak a word of what we were doing. It was
for your own safety.”

Dean lean forward in his seat and propped his forearms up onto the table as he
shot Castiel a glare. “I could give a rat’s ass about who's idea it was. When
shit hits the fan, you pick up the damn phone and you call me.” 

        “And what were we supposed to tell you, Dean?” Sam asked, turning to
his brother. “We barely knew what the hell was going on, we weren't going to
call you up on empty leads.”

        “Dammit, Sam,” Dean irritably snapped. “That's not the point. The way
this is turnin’ out, we all need to be on the same page in case this whole
thing goes south. If somethin’ happens to your or Cas, how in the hell am I
supposed to know what to do?” 

Sam went to argue back at his brother, but Alaine had abruptly intervened. 

        “Alright, that's enough,” she authoritatively spoke, glancing between
the brothers. “Now is definitely not the time for you two to start bickering at
each other. I'm pretty sure Cas has something important he needs to say and I
for one would like to hear it.” 

Dean’s eyes broke away from his brother’s face to glare at her but his
exasperated expression quickly faltered as he stared into her passive
countenance. 

        “You're right,” Sam sharply sighed as he turned back around in his
seat. “Cas, the floor is yours.” 

After a brief moment of awkward silence, the angel finally spoke up. 

        “Well,” he began. “As all of you are aware, Metatron is set on becoming
God. In order to do so, his plan is to overtake Heaven and free Lucifer from
the cage to annihilate all of mankind. The world as we know it will no longer
exist. In order for him to achieve this goal, he’ll need to obtain a certain
object that pertains to Greek mythology; The Spear of Triam. With this spear,
Metatron can harness the power of the Greek gods and use it to break Lucifer
out and completely destroy the earth. I spent the past few weeks trying to
pinpoint the exact location of the artifact, but out of nowhere, it
mysteriously disappeared.”

        “Disappeared?” Alaine echoed in confusion.

        “I believe that for some reason it must have been able to sense me.”

Sam raised a brow in question. “And by it you mean?”

        “The spear,” Castiel stated. 

        “Wait,” Dean spoke up as he propped his elbow up onto the table.
“You're tellin’ us this spear can sense angels?”

        “I assume demons too,” Castiel answered. “It must have some sort of
cloaking ability which allows it to hide itself from anything that isn't of its
time period.”

Sam leaned forward in his seat. “So what you're saying is, being that you're an
angel created by God, you can't track it.”

        “Yes.”

Dean let out a dry laugh as he shook his head in disbelief. “That's just great.
Now what the hell are we supposed to do?” 

Castiel thought for a moment before responding to the Hunter. “Being that
Metatron is an angel of the Lord, he’ll have the same difficulty in trying to
locate it. The only way we'll be able to find it before he does is if we get
help from someone who won't be blocked out by the spear’s hiding mechanism.”

All three Hunters exchanged a look before Sam questionably spoke up. 

        “You mean a Greek god?”

        “Or goddess,” Castiel added on. “Anyone that has power that matches the
spear’s should have the ability to locate it.” 

        “Well that's just fan-friggin’-tastic,” Dean exasperated. “To find the
thing we have to go on a damn goose chase.”

Alaine turned around to face the angel as an idea came to her mind.

        “The Bunker has thousands of files on different lore. Maybe we can try
to find something on how to summon and trap a Greek god. With that, we can use
it to our advantage to coerce them into helping us find the spear.”

        “I've been through at least half of those files,” Sam spoke in response
to her. “I don't remember ever coming across anything like what you're
suggesting.”

        “Then that means we have to start looking in places you haven't
checked,” Alaine said as she leaned back in her chair. 

        “Her idea just might be what we need to have the upper hand,” Castiel
spoke. “If we can manage to find the spear before Metatron, his entire plan
will apart.”

Dean sighed heavily as he rubbed at the stubble of his beard and fixed his gaze
onto her 

        “It's lookin’ like you're in charge, Lainey. What do you suggest we
do?”

She glanced over at Dean and softly blinked. “Well–I’d say we get the jump on
Metatron and start searching for anything we can find on Greek mythology. The
quicker we get through this, the better.”

Sam nodded his head in agreement as he turned to Dean and Alaine. “Alright,
guys. Let's get a move on, then.”
******

    The Bunker’s library looked as if a tornado had swept through it.
Everything was in a complete disarray. Stacks of books, folders and papers laid
strewn all over the tables and floor as the three Hunters sat around, combing
through every bit of information they could find on Greek mythology. It had
been over seven hours since Castiel’s visit. Shortly after his departure, they
had commenced the search for the Greek god summoning ritual, each of them
choosing a specific section within the library to focus on. Sam and Dean had
decided to look through the drawers of case files while Alaine chose to tackle
all of the bookshelves by herself. With every agonizing minute that passed, the
three of them came no closer to finding anything remotely relevant to what they
were searching for. Every book and every folder that was opened revealed to
hold no significant details that they could use. 

From within the operations room, Dean’s prominent voice spoke out as he
strolled into the library with two large cardboard boxes of files stacked in
his hands.

        “I grabbed these from the dungeon. I don't think we've looked through
them yet.”

Sam looked up from the table to glance over at his brother who appeared in the
wide entranceway. “Are there any more of those?”

Approaching the first table, Dean dropped the boxes onto its surface, a cloud
of dust lifting off from the boxes and circling around in the air. 

        “Yeah,” Dean answered as he dusted off his hands. “Too many to friggin’
count.”

        “Great,” Sam sighed in annoyance as he dropped his pen and leaned back
in his chair. “This is turning out to be too much. I mean, even with the three
of us here, it's still close to impossible for us to search through absolutely
everything.”

From behind a bookshelf, Alaine peeked her head up to cast a glance at the
brothers. 

        “Sam has a point. I'm starting to think this was a bad idea.”

       “Let’s not get discouraged yet, alright? It's still day one, I'm pretty
sure we'll come across somethin’ soon,” Dean spoke. 

        “And how long do we have to wait for that?” Sam asked. “Another seven
hours? Or seven days? Maybe seven months?” 

Dean cast Sam an annoyed expression at the sound of his sassy remark. “Really?”

        “Look,” Sam sighed once more. “All I'm saying is that so far, we got
nothing. It just feels like we're grasping at straws, man.”

        “Alright, that's it,” Dean said as he threw up his hands in
frustration. “How about we all go out and get some fresh air, huh? Maybe
somethin’ to eat? We've been cooped up in here all day, I think it's time we
take a break.”

Again, from behind the bookshelf, Alaine peeked up once more as she snapped the
book in her hand shut and gazed over at Dean with a grin. “I can so go for a
plate of buffalo wings right now.”

        “That's the attitude,” he smiled. “What do you say, Sammy?”

Sam thought for a moment before glancing back over at his brother and
responding with a shake of his head. “No, no thanks. You guys go on ahead.”

        “Dude. Come on,” Dean objected. 

        “It's fine, I'm just not really in the mood to go out.”

With a sigh, Dean grabbed up his gray jacket that had been draped over the back
of one of the chairs and turned to leave. “Alright, man. Text me if you want me
to bring you somethin’ back.”

Sam nodded his head in acknowledgment and returned his attention to the stack
of files scattered out on the table in front of him

Dean slipped on his jacket, briefly shoving his hands into the pockets to
assure himself that his car keys were there before he called out to Alaine from
inside of the operations room.

        “Hey, you comin’ or what?”

In less than a few seconds, Alaine dropped the book back onto the shelf, jumped
out of the leather chair and hurriedly trailed after him. “Hell yeah, let's
go.”

******     

    Dean and Alaine had driven around town for a little while with the windows
of the car rolled down. The late summer night had been a chilly one and the
crisp breeze that whipped into the Impala had Alaine silently cursing herself
for forgetting to grab her jacket before leaving home. She sat in the
passenger’s seat with her bare arms folded across her chest which was a poor
attempt in trying to keep herself warm. After ten long minutes had gone by, she
finally decided that she could no longer bare the cold.

        “Hey,” she turned to Dean. “Seriously, could you roll the windows up?
I'm freezing.”

Dean had slowed the car down to a steady halt in front of a stoplight before
shifting slightly in his seat to look over at her with a small smile tugging at
the corners of his lips. 

        “Come on, it ain't that cold.”

Arching a brow, she cast him an annoyed glance. “’Ain't that cold?’” she
echoed. “Says the guy who has on two layers underneath a jacket. Do you not see
what I'm wearing?”

His eyes briefly raked over her appearance before settling back onto her
irritated countenance. “T-shirt and jeans. What’s so bad about that?”

        “Dean,” she exasperated. “They provide no warmth.”

        “Want me to give you my jacket?” he offered.

Blowing out a frustrated sigh, she sunk into her seat. “No, I want you to roll
the damn windows up.”

With a mischievous smirk replacing his smile, Dean shifted around to face the
road in front of him once more as he eased his foot back onto the gas pedal and
began to drive.

        “You know,” he spoke in a playful tone, leaning  back in his seat and
removing a hand from the steering wheel to flatten it over her denim-clad
thigh. “There's plenty of ways you can get warmed up.”

Immediately, Alaine’s face flushed as she whipped her head in his direction and
stared at him wildly. 

        “Just say the word and I'll be more than happy to show you just what I
mean,” he went on to finish.

Alaine sat there for a moment and stared at him, astounded by his indirect
statement as his fingers crept forward and pressed into the inside of her
thigh. 

Turning his head, Dean glanced over at Alaine and was caught by surprise to see
her staring at him with wide eyes, her cheeks burning a deep shade of pink.

His smile widened ever further, the corners of his eyes crinkling as he let out
a hearty chuckle. 

        “I gotta say, you're pretty damn cute when you're lookin’ at me all
flustered like that, makes me just wanna throw your ass into the backseat and
eat you all up.” 

        “What?” she nervously blurted out as their gazes locked. She briskly
shifted around in her seat and faced forward as she hid away her face from his
view and stammered under her breath. “Just shut up and drive.”

They had continued to ride around town for a little while longer before Dean
rolled the Impala into the parking lot of their favorite dive bar and turned
the engine over. Stepping out of the car, they proceeded to make their way into
the busy establishment. As soon as they walked in through the doors, the sound
of classic rock music playing from the overhead speakers blared loudly around
them as they moved through the crowd to find themselves an empty table to
settle down into. To their luck, there had been an available one at the far
right-end corner of the bar. They quickly walked over to it and plopped down
into the seats adjacent from each other. 

        “So,” Dean spoke up from in front of her as he leaned forward in his
chair. “What are you in the mood for?”

Sitting back, she stretched her arms out on the table. “I'm good with whatever
you’re having, just make sure you order me some wings.”

Dean flashed her a playful smirk. “Sure thing, sweetheart.”

Turning his attention towards the bar, he waved over the middle aged barmaid.
When she approached their table, she pulled out a small notepad and a pen from
her back pocket and smiled down at Dean.

        “What can I do for ya, honey?”

Dean returned her smile. “Well have some buffalo wings and a couple of
Budweiser’s to start off the night.”

She quickly wrote down their order into her notepad before she looked up at
them. “Wings are gonna take about ten to fifteen minutes, but I’ll be back in a
jiff with those two beers.”

Alaine smiled up at her. “That’s fine.”

With a simple nod, the barmaid waltzed on over towards the swinging doors that
lead to the kitchen to drop off their order before moving behind the bar and
retrieving two Budweiser’s from the fridge underneath the counter. She popped
them open with a bottle opener that was attached to a rope that hung from the
bar and casually made her way back over to their table to set their beers down
in front of them.

        “Here you are,” she smiled. “Let me know if you need anything else.”

Dean thanked her and with that, she quickly returned to her post behind the
bar. Reaching out, he wrapped his hand around the bottle and brought the rim up
to his lips to take a huge chug.

From across the table, Alaine quietly watched him as she held onto her beer
with both hands, her eyes softly focused onto his face and her mind deep in
thought. When Dean noticed her staring at him several seconds later, he set his
drink back down onto the table and cast her a concerned glance. 

        “You okay?” he asked. 

She remained silent for a brief moment before speaking up. “Yeah.”

There had been a small, almost unnoticeable shift in her tone that Dean had
immediately caught and by the change in her voice, he had ascertained that
there was something eating at her. He intently studied her face in an attempt
to read into her expression, but just like him, Alaine was real good at masking
her thoughts towards others. He was aware of just how much her personality
resembled his and if she was anything like him at all, he knew for a fact that
opening up wasn't something she'd probably do. Deciding against prying into her
mind, Dean chose to distract her from her thoughts instead, if that was even
possible. 

For the remainder of their time at the bar, they sat around, chatted, ate,
played a couple games of pool and drank until they could no longer drink
anymore. When the time neared one A.M, Dean got up from his chair and headed
over to the bar to pay their tab as Alaine remained at the table. She chugged
the rest of her last beer before setting the empty bottle down onto the
tabletop and leaning back in her seat as she waited for him to come back so
they could go on home.
A few minutes had gone by of her sitting there by herself before she began to
wonder why he was taking so long. With a sigh, she turned in her chair and
glanced over at the bar. Her eyes scanned through the small crowd of men and
women in search for him and once her gaze had pinpointed where he was, her face
immediately hardened. From what she could see, Dean was leaning against the
bar, his left arm propped up onto the countertop with what she assumed to be a
playful smile tugging at the corners of his lips as a tall, olive skinned
brunette stood dangerously close to him, laughing obnoxiously at whatever had
just come out of his mouth.
Alaine's blood quickly began to boil in her veins as she watched the woman lean
into him with a chuckle, her hand grasping onto his bicep as the smile on his
face widened further. From where she sat, she could hear the sound of his
hearty laughter and with that, she found herself quickly rising to her feet.
For a second, she became somewhat unbalanced and had grabbed onto the back of
her chair for support before sucking in a deep breath and stalking her way over
towards the bar.

Dean had been conversing with the woman in front of him who had randomly
stricken up a conversation as he waited for the bartender to return him his
change. He had been so engrossed in what they were talking about that after he
had gotten his money back, he remained where he stood, his mind briefly
forgetting about Alaine sitting back at the table waiting for him. The South
American woman's charisma was so captivating. Her aura, her smile, her
laughter, she was downright mesmerizing. Dean couldn't help but get caught up
in their conversation as she had grasped his full attention with her exuberant
personality. 

        “You know,” he had spoken up. “I've never really met anyone like you
before. I mean, wow. I ain't tryin’ to make a move on you or anything, but
there's just somethin’ about you that I don't quite get.”

She flashed him a smile as she flirtatiously cocked her head to the side and
batted her eyes lashes. “Oh, do tell.”

He stared at her for a moment, his eyes raking over her entire face before he
spoke. “Why’s a girl like you sittin’ in a place like this.”

        “Yeah, I can see why that might raise some questions,” she laughed.
“I'm actually just rolling through town. I'm on a cross country road trip.”

        “Alone?” Dean skeptically questioned.

        “I had to get away from home—experienced a bad break up, lost a couple
of friends along with my job. I figured it was time I hit the road to try to
re-find myself, whatever that's supposed to actually mean.”

        “Well,” he smiled at her. “Here's a piece of advice: Try to stick away
from places like these, a nice girl like you can get into a whole lotta trouble
out here.”

The woman let out a chuckle. “And who says I'm a nice girl?”

Dean went to make a comment when out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone
approaching and fast. When he turned his head to get a look at who it was, his
eyes were instantly met with the livid glare of Alaine's gaze. He quickly
pushed off of the counter, turning his body away from the woman in front of him
as he faced Alaine head on. 

        “Hey,” he called out, moving over towards her. “What's wrong?” 

She let out a scoff as her gaze broke away from his face to glance at the woman
behind him.

        “What's wrong? I've been sitting over there, waiting on you for the
past ten minutes while you're here flirting up a storm with this random slut,”
she spat.

Dean quickly raised up his hands in defense. “Woah, hold on—“

        “No,” she angrily interjected. “I don't want to hear a damn thing that
comes out of your mouth. If you want to stay here, be my guest but I'm going
home.”

As Alaine turned to storm off, Dean hastily gripped onto her wrist, halting her
in mid step.

        “Dammit, wait,” he clipped as he turned her back around to face him. “I
wasn't flirtin’ with her—“

        “Don't try to give me an explanation ‘cause I really don't give a
shit,” she spoke with a harsh tone as she wrenched out of his grasp and moved
away from him. “You can do whatever the hell you want, Dean. Go fuck her for
all I care.”

Dean’s eyes widened with confusion as he stared down into her infuriated
countenance. “What? Where the hell is this even comin’ from?”

        “From you, you selfish asshole,” she snapped as she turned to leave
once more. “You can go screw yourself.”

From behind Dean, the woman's voice had spoken up as she muttered something
under her breath, but to her impending misfortune, Alaine had been able to hear
her loud and clear. 

         “Perra.” 

She had abruptly stopped right in her tracks as her mind quickly processed what
it had just heard. Turning around, she fixed her hard gaze onto the woman as
her expression shifted. 

         “What the fuck did you just call me?”

With a sly grin, the woman climbed down from her barstool and stood upright.
“Oh, that wasn't for you to hear,” she sneered. “But since you did, I'll repeat
it nice and slow for you–perra.”

Alaine's feet had moved of their own accord. She had been too quick for Dean to
stop her as she sidestepped him. Fueled by anger and alcohol, she tightly
balled up her hand and without taking a second to think, she took a swing, the
sound of her fist slamming into the woman’s face along with the loud cracking
of her nose breaking underneath the forceful impact echoing loudly within the
busy establishment. 

With a pained scream, the woman stumbled back, her body knocking over the
barstools behind her as she toppled over and dropped down onto the floor. A
small crowd of men and women quickly gathered around and stared at the
astonishing sight before them as Alaine walked up to the her as she lay curled
up on the ground, crying and bleeding profusely all over herself. She leaned
down slightly to make her face leveled to hers before speaking in a taunting
tone. 

         “For your own safety, next time you want to call someone a bitch,
primero asegúrate qué no sepan español, pendeja."

Dean stood idly by with a gaping expression on his face as he watched Alaine
straighten herself and snatch a dishrag off from the bar’s countertop to wipe
away the blood on her knuckles before turning back around to face him. Casting
him a menacing glare, she briskly pushed past the group of people that had been
huddled around as she walked over towards the exit.
Making her way outside, Alaine was immediately welcomed by the cold chill of
the night. She cursed under her breath as she sped walk through the parking
lot, passing the Impala that was stationed nearby as she stepped onto the
desolate road and began her journey back home on foot. Her hand was in a great
deal of pain, but at that moment she didn't care. The bitch deserved it.
Although she had briefly vented her frustrations out on the woman's face, there
was still so much unexpressed anger inside of her that was just waiting to come
pouring out. Since they had gotten to the bar hours earlier, Alaine had been in
a off mood and that was because of the numerous thoughts and questions circling
around in her mind.
A part of her had wanted to open up and speak to Dean about what was bothering
her, but she was so sure that his reaction wouldn't have been what she would've
wanted. When she thought about it, Dean wasn't really the person she wished for
him to be.
There were things that she definitely loved about him just like there were
things that she kind of disliked, but there were some characteristics he didn’t
naturally possess which had her now second guessing everything.
How could she let herself be with a man who cared of nothing but of his own
personal gain? He had proven to her that night that the beautiful moments of
intimacy they had shared with one another had meant absolutely nothing to him,
that it had all been nothing more than just another casual fuck. In her
presence, he had gone and flirted with another woman.
He had shown her that being a one-woman man was something that he was not. It
angered her to think that she had allowed herself to be fooled by him, that she
had let him tap into her emotions in order to get what he had been wanting
since she the first day she stepped into the Bunker.
How could she be so damn stupid? How could she believe that a man like him
could ever possibly love her? She let him touch her, she let him be inside of
her, she let him see her in a way that no other man other than himself had ever
seen her before. She was an idiot for believing that she ever mattered to him,
for believing that she meant something to him. She was just another woman out
of the many on his list. Just another pathetic number…

While Alaine continued to walk along the side of the road, a car could be heard
approaching in the far distance. From the familiar roaring of the engine, she
immediately knew it was the Impala. Picking up her feet, she began to walk at a
faster pace as her hands trembled softly at her sides. Why was he following
her? As the car came closer, the bright light of its headlights illuminated the
dark road in front of her. With an angered scoff, she started to walk even
faster, her wide hips swaying with every step she took in attempt to get away
but there was just no way she could outwalk a car. 

From behind her, the sound of the engine’s roaring softly died down to a soft
rumble as the Impala now trailed slowly alongside her. Lowering the window,
Dean stuck out his head to glance up at her as he kept his hand firmly on the
wheel. 

         “Get in.” 

Clenching and unclenching her fists, Alaine fought to repress her seething
anger as she continued to walk. “Fuck off.”

         “I said get in the damn car, Alaine,” he commanded, his tone clipped
and serious.

         “And I said fuck off!” she snapped. 
Anger now taking over, Dean clenched his jaw as he pressed down onto the gas.
The Impala lurched forward with great speed and drove past her until it was
several yards away before it turned around abruptly and stopped. Leaving the
engine running, he quickly climbed out of the car, the sound of the door
creaking open and slamming shut echoing into the night as he stalked over to
her.  

         “What the hell is your damn problem?” Dean blared as he jutted out his
arms in exasperation. “You not only went off on me, but you knocked that poor
girl’s lights out. I had to sorry my ass out of them callin’ the cops.” 

Alaine’s expression hardened as she stared at him head on. “Poor girl?” she
spat. “Why don't you head back over there then since you're so concerned about
her.”

Dean’s brow furrowed at the hint of sarcasm in her voice. “I'm  worried about
her, I'm worried about you. You've been out of it all night. I don't know what
the hell could've crawled up your ass to have you in such a bitchy mood but—“

         “Just shut the hell up,” she clipped. “Don't stand here and start
acting like all of a sudden you give a shit about me when I'm nothing more than
just another piece of ass to you.”

         “Piece of ass?” he echoed, his tone now softly dropping. “Is that how
you think I see you?”

Alaine had already been fuming and the alcohol in her system had been the
catalyst that fueled her uncontrollable rage which forced her to finally
combust. 

         “It's not what I think, it's what I know,” she began to yell. “All
this time you've been just itching to get into my pants. Since I first moved
in, all you really cared about was fucking me. You made so many damn hints at
it and me like the dumbass that I am, I let you. I fucking let you. My idiotic
way of thinking was that if I slept with you, you would want to be with me, but
guess what I figured out? I came to realize that giving myself up to you again
after all these years isn't going to change the fact that I mean absolutely
nothing to you. All I am is another worthless girl that was stupid enough to
let you have sex with her.”

Dean stood before her, completely rendered speechless by her sudden outburst.
He stared at her with a shocked expression plastered to his face as her words
resonated in the air. For a moment, he didn't know what to say. He had never
seen her so angry before. Any other dispute that they've had in the past had
been of trivial matters. They’d bicker about who was next to do the laundry, or
why the food had been left out on top of the kitchen table, or who had drank
the last bit of coffee. Those things had been of little to no importance, but
this time around the severity of the situation was far more greater. She had
just vented to him what lied deep within her heart and he couldn't help but
feel like a complete asshole for being the reason why she felt that way.
Without intending to do so, Dean had cast a doubt within her that now had her
looking at him in a different way. 

With tears of frustration now clouding her eyes, Alaine continued to yell.
“Tell me, Dean. Tell me that everything I've said is true, tell me that it's
not all in my head, tell me I'm not being an illogically paranoid ass and that
you don’t care about me. Come on, let me hear the truth!”

Dean looked upon her with pain and regret reflecting in his eyes. With a solemn
expression, he cautiously inched his way over to her, reaching out an arm to
cup her cheek into his calloused palm. "Alaine, I—" 

Before he could touch her, Alaine abruptly backed away from him as she jutted
out her hand and held it up to halt him. 

        "Don't," she snapped. "Just don't." 

Furrowing his brow, he slowly dropped his arm back down to his side and stood
silent before her as she furiously swiped away at a tear that had managed to
trickle down her cheek.

        “I don't want to hear a word of what you have to say,” she choked out,
her voice tight with anger. “Just take me the hell home.” 

Dean had no choice other than to comply to her demand. He knew that at that
moment there was just no amount of reasoning he could do that would convince
her to listen to him. She was too drunk and too caught up in her emotions to be
even able to think clearly. Whatever words he'd utter would just fall on deaf
ears, so with a burdened sigh, he nodded his head. 

         “Alright… I'll take you home.” 
    
******

    Upon arriving at the Bunker, Dean steadily rolled the Impala into the
underground garage. He shut off the ignition and leaned back in his seat as he
uncurled his fingers from around the steering wheel and flattened his hands
over his thighs. Exhaling softly, Dean dared himself to steal a glance at
Alaine and when he did, his chest tightened.
For the entire drive, his attention had been focused onto the road as well as
the number of endless thoughts that had been swirling around in his mind. He
hadn’t bothered to look at her even once, but if he would have, the effect
would have been the same as it was at this moment.
His somber gaze was now fixed onto her tear streaked face, a clear indication
that she had been crying just moments before. His eyes quietly looked upon her
with sadness as she sat there, utterly immobile. He internally struggled to
find something to say, but he knew that it wouldn't make any difference or
change in however it was that she was feeling.
Whether if it was anger or sadness or a combination of both, Dean knew that it
was best to just leave her be, so when she finally decided to get out of  the
car, he didn’t make an attempt to hold her back. Instead, he reluctantly let
her leave. It was close to two in the morning but it wasn’t until much later
that Dean decided to get out of his car and head off to bed. He had sat in the
Impala for what seemed like forever as he tried to figure out what he had done
wrong. Back at the bar, he hadn’t been flirting with the woman, all he had done
was engage into a simple and sane conversation with her.
From Alaine’s perspective, he understood why it had appeared differently to
her. He understood why she reacted the way she did, he even understood why she
hit the woman, but the one thing that had him drowning in an whirlpool of
emotions was how could she think that she meant nothing to him. What could he
have done so wrong for her to believe he didn’t care about her when in reality,
she meant the absolute world to him? If only he knew how to show her, if only
he had the strength to open up his mouth and tell her.
The terrible truth was that although he came to realize that he was falling in
love with her, he was deeply terrified of what would happen the moment he'd
decide to finally open up and profess. He was afraid that the minute he’d voice
his feelings, fate would work against him as it had so many times before to
destroy what was good in his life and as much as he was used to being used and
abused by the world, this time around, he knew he wouldn't survive loosing her.
Dean Winchester wasn’t scared of much, but the sheer thought of him living
without her frightened him right down to his very soul. In the past, all
encounters and relationships with women had been the same, but this time
around, no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't envision his life without
her in it.
For the first time in a very long time, he was truly happy and it was all
because of her. If she hadn't come along when she had, the guilt, torment and
pain that had been eating away at him would have ultimately killed him.
Without realizing it, Alaine had given him a purpose to live, to fight. She had
given him a reason to hold on when everything around him had begun to seem
hopeless. She unknowingly saved him from himself by giving him something to
love and protect and for that, he was eternally grateful. Alaine Ventura had
become his savior, his beacon of light to guide him out of the darkness. What
more could he ever ask for when he had all that he had been missing right
before him?
If someone would've asked him three months ago if he'd ever see himself to be a
one woman man, he would’ve laughed right in their face, but now, his answer
would be the complete opposite. All he wanted, all he needed was her and there
wasn’t anything nor anyone who could ever possibly change that because he had
resigned himself to the thought of living out the rest of his days with her by
his side. 

By the time Dean quietly made his way through the Bunker on over towards his
room, it was the break of dawn and the sun was beginning to rise. He tiredly
stripped down to his brown tee and boxer briefs before crawling into bed and
plopping down onto the memory foam mattress. He buried his head into his pillow
and let out a long sigh as he closed eyes and laid on his side. Just as the
muscles in his body naturally relaxed and he could feel the wave of exhaustion
slowly creeping over him, the door to his room had been creaked opened.

Dean peaked his eyes open as his body began to tingle with the familiarity of
the presence making its way inside. All he felt was the mattress dip with the
weight of their body before a slender arm reached out from behind him to curl
around his waist as they scooted closer to him and nuzzled into his back.
Almost instantly, the subtle yet mind-numbing aroma of lavender swept through
the air and he closed his eyes as his chest constricted. For a long moment, he
basked in the comforting feeling that gently washed over him before he, almost
timidly, spoke out into the dimly lit room.

         “Alaine.”

There was a moment's silence before her small voice came from behind him.

         “Dean…”

The sound of his name escaping her in what sounded like a broken whisper
flooded his heart as he closed his eyes and let out a shaky sigh. With gentle
movements, Dean slowly shifted around until he was facing her. He gazed down at
her as she lowered her head and pulled away from him. 

         “You... you said I could come to you if I ever needed you,” she choked
out in a tremulous voice as tears began to pool in her eyes. “I–I need you… I
need you so much right now.”

Without a moment's hesitation, Dean’s arms swept around her as he pulled her
into him and embraced her. She nuzzled into his chest as quiet sobs raked her
body and he tightened his hold around her. 

        “I'm here, baby,” he hushed, his gruff voice gripped with emotion. “I'm
right here.” 

What started off as small sniffles quickly broke out into heavy sobbing as Dean
tightly cradled her trembling frame and fought as hard as he could not to
break. It pained him to see her in such a state and he couldn’t help but to
feel guilty for being the reason as to why she was hurting inside. For a
moment, he debated on what he should say. Should he speak up now? Was he ready
to be completely open with her?  Was he prepared to make himself so
vulnerable?He took a few seconds to gather his scrambled thoughts and decided
that although he was not in fact ready, he was going to be as honest as he
possibly could.

         “I'm so sorry,” he shakily breathed as a sob had raked her body. “God…
it's my fault for makin’ you feel this way, for makin’ you doubt this, but
whatever ‘this’ is meant to be, I promise you it's all that I friggin’ want.” 

Dean closed his eyes and continued before his uncertainty could stop him. “I
care about you so damn much, it friggin’ scares the hell out of me… The way you
make me feel–I don't want to ever risk losing that.”

Alaine nuzzled deeper into his chest as she tightly clung onto his shirt.
Unwinding an arm from around her, Dean slipped his fingers through her silky
hair and cupped the side of her head into his hand.

         “Look at me, sweetheart,” he softly coaxed, his fingertips gently
pressing into her skull. 

Hesitantly, she pulled her head back and slowly lifted her teary gaze up to his
somber face. Through the soft lighting in the room, Dean was able to see how
her lip quivered with the attempt of her trying to hold back another sob as her
red rimmed eyes peered into his.

He swallowed away the lump that had formed in his throat as his expression
slightly hardened.

        “I need you to listen to me, okay? I may not know much about how
relationships work, but what I do know for sure is that it takes two people to
make it last. This ain't somethin’ I'm used to. I might make some mistakes
along the way, I might not meet whatever expectations you have but if you're
willing to work with me and guide me through this, I’m willing to give it a
shot and try. I can't do it without you, Lainey. So what do you say? You wanna
give the whole ‘dating’ thing a go?”

Her mind took its time to assess the words he’d spoken and when the meaning
behind what he said finally registered, she felt her heart flutter dangerously
from within her chest. He said it. He said he wants to give it a try…
As a defense mechanism, her heart refused to believe it. It's too good to be
true. Could he really be saying the truth? Being that she was no longer
intoxicated, her mind was now able to think rationally. Would he say these
things if he didn’t mean it? Would he lead her on under false pretenses in
order to obtain what he wanted? Was it in her best interest to give him the
benefit of the doubt?
All those questions held the same answer, all but one. As she thought further,
her eyes never leaving his solemn face, she came to the conclusion that Dean
was utterly and completely telling her the truth. Letting out an unsteady
exhale, she intently scanned over his countenance before her clouded vision
settled back onto his soft green gaze and her lips softly quirked up into a
small smile. 

         “Y—yes,” she softly stammered, her voice no higher than a whisper. 

With a warm, almost childlike grin replacing his bleak countenance, Dean's eyes
lit up. 

         “Well, guess you should start callin’ me babe now that–you know, I'm
your boyfriend and all.” 

Alaine let out a lighthearted giggle as he gently swiped away her leftover
tears with the pad of his thumb. 

         “There goes that beautiful laugh I love,” he sweetly murmured as he
lowered his head to press a small kiss to her nose. 

Alaine let out a gentle exhale. “Dean?”

         “Yeah?”

         “I'm–I'm sorry for how I treated you tonight. You didn't deserve that.
I was wrong for acting that way and I apologize.”

Dean gave her a reassuring look. “It's alright. To be honest, I probably
would've done the same as you… but I really gotta ask you something.”

         “Okay.”

         “When the hell were you plannin’ on tellin’ me you spoke Spanish?”

Alaine smiled up at him. “I thought you knew.”

         “The hell I did,” he laughed. “Caught me by surprise. I had no clue,
but lemme tell you, crap was friggin’ hot, and I mean real hot.”

         “Really?” she blushed. 

Dean propped up his upper body onto his forearm as he beamed down at her. “You
kiddin’ me? I've heard girls speak Spanish before but somethin’ about the way
you talk it does stuff to me.”

         “Maybe it's my accent. All Latino countries have different accents.
I'm part Argentinian so ours is kind of more refined and smoother.”

         “Part, as in half?” Dean asked.

Alaine nodded with a smile. “Yeah. Half Argentinian, half Armenian.”

         “I'm gonna go ahead and guess your dad was from Argentina.”

         “And you've guessed right,” she chuckled. 

         “Well, thank God for your mother meeting him.“
Alaine watched as his expression shifted into something more playful as a
thought quickly entered his mind. With a seductive smirk coming across his
face, he flattened his palm over her hip.  

         “Say something.”

Alaine raised her brows in question. “Like what?”

         “Anything. I just need to hear you.”

She took a moment to think of something to say when an idea suddenly struck
her. Moving to mimic his position, Alaine supported her upper body up onto her
forearm and cocked her head to the side as she reached out and grasped his chin
between her thumb and forefinger.

         “Hare lo que quieras, papí. Soy solamente tuya.” 

Dean's jaw tightly clenched, his mouth going dry and his eyes widening as a
shudder ran right down the middle of his spine. He gazed wildly onto her
playful countenance as the blood pumping through his veins headed down south
and his core tightly coiled.

         “Was that sexy enough for you?” she asked, leaning in closer so that
their mouths were just inches apart. 

         “Baby,” he growled, his voice low and rough. “You have no friggin’
idea.”
***** Chapter Eleven *****
Chapter Notes
     WARNING: There's a little bit of smut in here (just a tad, nothing
     too crazy.)
   Sam had been in the library alone. Books and papers were scattered across
the surface of the table as he sat in his seat with his laptop placed in front
of him. He had woken up around daybreak, deciding to get a head start on some
of the research from the day before.
He surfed the web, flipped through pages, read through files. He had centered
all of his attention into what sat before him that he had hardly realized that
hours had gone by without him eating a single bite of anything. It was the
sound of his stomach grumbling that snapped him into focus and when he looked
up from the screen of his laptop, his eyes had been met with the warm smile of
Alaine who had been standing just outside the entranceway of the library,
holding a paper plate in her hands with two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
on top of it.

        “Good morning,” she greeted as she casually strolled into the room.

Sam leaned back in his seat and flashed her a welcoming grin as he reached for
his glass of water to take a small sip.

        “Morning.”

Walking up to the table, she set the plate down and pulled out a chair to sit
in the seat across from him.

       “I sorta peeked my head in here earlier and saw you sitting here by
yourself. I guessed you skipped breakfast so I thought I'd make you a little
something to eat.”

Sam’s smile widened further as he reached over to grab one of the sandwiches
from the plate. “That’s real nice of you. Thanks for thinking of me.”

        “Don’t mention it,” she chuckled lightly. “So, how's the research
coming along?”

Taking a bite from the PB&J, he flickered his gaze back down to his laptop
screen as he chewed.

        “Still got nothing.”

Alaine leaned forward in her seat and folded her arms over the tabletop. “Any
potential cases floating around?”

        “Actually, yeah.” He cleared his throat before explaining further. “I
found one in Russell, Iowa. Three disappearances, all of them men in their late
twenties. No clues were left behind, no trace of anything at all. It's like
they just all vanished into thin air.

Alaine’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Sounds like this one'll be interesting.”

        “By the way,” Sam spoke, his gaze settling back over her face. “Where's
Dean? It's ten minutes to eleven, he rarely ever sleeps in this late.”

        “He was out cold when I woke up a couple of hours ago. He might still
be asleep.”

Sam nodded. “Hmm, alright.”

For a brief moment, he stared at her in question before speaking up again.

        “So… How's it going with you two?”

        “Better,” she sighed, softly. “Much better.”

        “Good. I'm glad to hear that,” he sincerely smiled. “You know, Dean's
really been through a lot, it kind of brings me peace to know he has someone
like you around. Things aren't really good between us right now, but his
overall happiness is what matters to me most so I just want to thank you for
being there for him.” 

         “Sam,” she began. “You don't have to thank me—“

         “No. I do,” he interrupted. “You’ve helped him so much. I see it in
the way he smiles when he's looking at you. It's a real, genuine smile and it's
been so long since I've seen that look in his eyes. I don’t know if you’ve
noticed it or not, but I have. My brother needs you. He might not admit it out
loud, but he'd be lost without you. All I’m going to do is just ask you for one
thing...  Promise me you won't stop doing what you're doing.”

Alaine gazed at the younger Winchester as a wholehearted smile swept across her
face. She swallowed away the lump that had formed in her throat before
responding.

        “I won't. I promise.”

Sam returned her smile and nodded in thanks as his gaze drifted back down to
his laptop.

The next half hour passed by slowly as the two Hunters sat together and
chatted. They spoke of the work they needed to do to and of the details
pertaining to the new case that had surfaced.

Around eleven o'clock, Dean made his way into the library, freshly showered,
fully dressed and with a fresh cup of coffee in his hand. Sam and Alaine both
turned their attention to him as he stepped into the room with a bright smile
dancing in his luminous eyes.

Dean’s gaze immediately landed on her and without fail, his lips quirked up
into a wide grin.

       “Mornin’, baby,” he beamed, walking up to her chair and leaning down to
kiss the crown of her head.

Alaine chuckled as she shifted in her seat to glance up at his surprisingly
cheerful face. “Good morning to you too.”

       “You're in an awfully good mood today,” Sam acknowledged from across the
table as he gazed at the couple.

Glancing over at his brother, Dean raised a brow. “What? A guy can't wake up
happy?”

         “No, it's just that you're never this happy,” Sam responded with an
almost skeptic look. “I'm just surprised is all. It's sudden, but good.”

        “Well, I'm glad you think so,” Dean smiled, shoving a hand into his
pocket. “So, what you two been up to?”

From beside him, Alaine spoke up.

       “Sam's found us a case and it sounds pretty promising.”

Dean looked down at her then back over at his brother with an intrigued
countenance as he moved from Alaine’s side to stand beside Sam's chair.

        “Watcha got, Sammy?”

Sam glanced down to his laptop and began to type on the keyboard as he pulled
up the information for his brother to look over.

        “Three missing persons, all from the same city and state. All three
victims which just so happen to be men were said to have gone out on a camping
trip together into the woods. They were expected to return home three days ago
but when no one heard from them, the families called the Sheriff’s department
to investigate. The Sherriff headed out to their campsite and found that the
tent along with every single one of their belongings had been left behind.
There was no sign of a struggle, no sign of any foul play, there was literally
nothing that could identify what might've happened to them.”

Dean’s brow furrowed as he leaned over and briefly read through the news
article Sam had displayed for him across the screen.

         “Sounds like somethin’ weird might be goin’ on.”

         “No kidding,” Sam scoffed. “And get this, in the past four months,
some people reported seeing something lurking around the lake at night. One
couple said they saw a creature swimming around in the water with glowing green
eyes and called it the Loch Ness monster.”

        “We all know Nessie’s just a myth, but what kind of creature lives in
water and has a pair of glow sticks for eyes?”

Sam looked up at his brother with a sigh. “Your guess is as good as mine. I
have no clue what we might be dealing with here.”

Dean lifted his head and cast Alaine a glance as he stood upright once more.

       “Baby, you've ever heard of somethin’ like this before?”

        “Umm, no,” she answered, leaning back in her chair and folding her
hands into her lap as she tried to rack her brain for anything useful. “I don’t
think I have.”

        “Well, whatever the hell this thing is, I say we stop it before it
claims another victim.”

Sam and Alaine both agreed with Dean’s statement and without hesitation, the
three of them quickly began to assemble their things for the seven hour drive
to Russell, Iowa.
******
    Once the Hunters arrived in the small town, they immediately made their way
towards the cheapest motel they could find. They checked into two separate
rooms and after dropping their things off, they headed right back out to get
dinner. They drove around in search of a diner until they found one that caught
their attention. After settling into a booth inside of the establishment and
ordering their meals, the three began to discuss their game plan for the case.

         “I think we should head out to the families' homes tomorrow and try to
get some insight on these missing guys,” Dean suggested.

        “I agree,” Alaine spoke up from beside him. “We can split up and meet
back at the motel to go over our next move.

Sam sat across from them with a pensive look on his face.

        “I just can't wrap my mind around what kind creature we might be
possibly dealing with,” he sighed. “I mean, none of this sounds like something
we've seen before. We did that one case years ago in Wisconsin where the spirit
of a young kid was drowning members of a family, but this is so different from
that.”

Dean nodded in agreement. “I remember that. We're just gonna have to put our
heads together on this one ‘cause it don’t seem like it's gonna be an easy one
for us to crack.”

Sam sighed again as he tiredly rubbed at his face. “Yeah, you might be right.”

Turning his head, Dean gazed down at Alaine who had been sitting beside him,
quietly peering up into his face. He gave her a small smile as he reached out
an arm behind her to curl it around her back and pull her into his side.

         “You okay, sweetheart?”

         “Yeah,” she half smiled. “Just thinking.”

Dean's brows knit together in question. “What's on your mind?”

         “Nothing really,” she answered with a soft shake of her head. “I just
started remembering a story my mother told me when I was a little girl.”

He slowly began to stroke his hand up and down her arm as he intently gazed
down at her, his curiosity now piqued.

          “What was it?”

Alaine took a moment to try to recall some of the details of the story before
relating it to him.

         “She used to say that when she was little, living in Europe, she'd
hear tales of a water nymph who'd take the lives of men and children. She'd
lure them into a lake with her singing to then later drown them. She said the
water nymph was a creature of great mystery and beauty but extremely dangerous
because she was born from death. After a woman that was with child was drowned
or committed suicide, she said that her spirit would turn into a water nymph
and would forever seek vengeance until her wrongdoers' were dead by her own
hands.”

Both Sam and Dean stared at her quizzically.

         “Did she ever tell you the name of the creature?” Sam asked, leaning
forward in his seat.

         “Yeah, but I don’t remember what it was. This was so long ago.”

The brothers exchanged a mutual expression of awareness between each other
before Dean spoke up.

          “You think you can do some diggin’ on this water nymph?”

          “I should be able to find something,” Sam replied.

Nodding in response, Dean unwound his arm from around Alaine’s waist.

         “Good. Let's get our food to go. I wanna get a head start on this
case.”
******

   Back at the motel, the Hunters sat around in Sam's room, eating their meals
at the small table while the youngest Winchester did the work of searching for
anything relatable to Alaine’s story. After an hour of endless web browsing, he
finally came across something relevant.

        “Hey guys?” Sam called from his seat at the end of the table. “I think
I got something.”

Both Dean and Alaine had been sitting adjacent from him, finishing up the last
bit of their dinner. Looking up from their plates, they glanced over at Sam.

        “Talk to us, Sammy,” Dean urged. “Watcha got?”

         “Alright. So, legend has it, back in Slavic lore, a creature known as
a Rusalka was considered to be a spirit-like being that took delight in killing
men and children. It’d lure them with its singing into a lake or river to drown
them. It's been said that they were known for either being beautiful or
horrendously hideous but had green glowing eyes all the same.”

Dean scoffed in surprise at his brother's revelation.

         “Son of a bitch. Looks like your mom's story had some truth to it,
babe.”

         “Now that I think of it,” she spoke up, turning to face Sam with a
knowing expression on her face. “I remember her calling it a Rusalka. What else
did you find?”

        “They're pretty much compared to vampires for the very same reason that
they're undead but unlike vampires, they don't drink blood. They spend mostly
the fall and winter dwelling in the water and spring and summer walking on
land. The way to distinguish a Rusalka is by the sole fact that their hair will
never be dry or else they’ll die.”

         “How do we kill it?” Dean asked.

Sam scrolled further down the webpage before speaking once more. “Uh—it's says
that since they're considered as a spirit, salt or iron can repel them but to
stop a Rusalka, we're gonna have to kill the person it's seeking revenge on.”

The eldest Winchester sighed in annoyance.

         “Even if we were to do that, which we won't, how in the hell are we
gonna find out who the bitch is after?”

        “Well,” Sam began to suggest. “We can start by going through town
records to try to find any women who might've been drowned or committed suicide
by the lake. It's the only lead we got.”

         “You two can head out and talk to the families tomorrow and I'll go
down to the station to speak to the sheriff. By splitting up, we'll get the job
done twice as fast.”

Sam and Dean both glanced at Alaine.

         “That’s sounds good to me,” Sam spoke in agreement to her idea. “Let's
split up.”

Dean rubbed at his faint beard and let out a small huff.

         “Alright, we got our game plan. Let's call it a night so we can wake
up early and get this thing over with.”

After talking over the details of the case in depth once more, Dean and Alaine
wished Sam a goodnight and headed over to their room to shower and turn in for
the night. Once inside, Alaine wasted no time in strolling into the bathroom to
strip out of her clothes. She shut the door behind her and began to peel her T-
shirt up the length of her body and pulled it over her head. She toed off her
boots all the while unbuttoning and zipping down her jeans. As she shoved them
down past her hips and leaned over to slip them off her legs, the door softly
creaked open.

         “Baby?”

Dean peaked in his head, his eyes immediately landing on the roundness of
Alaine’s wide ass as she bent over and tugged off her jeans. She was wearing
nothing but a matching set of red lace lingerie and as a reflex, his jaw
clenched as she slowly stood upright to give him a full view of her curvaceous
body from head to toe.

Glancing over her shoulder, she flashed him a soft smile, her long hair
cascading down her back in smooth, chestnut waves.

        “Yes?”

His eyes raked over every single mouthwatering curve before his gaze settled
back onto the playful expression on her face.

        “Did you need something, papí?” she asked, her tone feigning innocence
as she slowly turned around to face him.

Dean felt his face flush as his body stiffened on reflex.

        “I–uh, I wanted to... Well, I wanted to ask if, um—if you wanted to..."

In the middle of his nervous babbling, Alaine slowly reached behind her and
with one hand, unclasped her bra. Glancing at him from underneath her thick
lashes, she cast him a smoldering glare before slipping the article of clothing
off of her body and letting it softly fall onto the ground by her small,
manicured feet.

Dean's wide, lust blown eyes settled over the flawlessly beautiful sight of her
bare breast and lost all train of thought as he stared at her with ravenous
desire.

        “Oh, fuck it.”

Moving so swiftly, Dean stepped into the bathroom and within an instant his
hands were all over her, groping, rubbing and touching as his lips devoured her
in a heated kiss. He stripped her out of her panties while she helped him
undress and as soon as they were both completely unclothed, they quickly
clambered into the tub, their hands never leaving each other’s bodies as they
went on to not only shower, but to make steamy, passionate love to one another
over and over again.

After coming out of the bathroom an hour and a half later, Dean and Alaine were
too tired to even dress themselves. Instead, they plopped down onto the bed and
slipped under the sheets. Dean scooted across the bed until his front was to
her back and gently curled his arm around her. Nuzzling her hair, he let out a
long, exhausted sigh as he pulled her naked body into his chest.

        “Baby… what are you doing to me?” he murmured.
Alaine peaked open her eyes at the sound of his gruff voice.

         “What do you mean?” she softly asked in return.
He paused for a beat, his fingers rubbing small circles across her stomach as
he closed his eyes and let out another gentle exhale.   

         “I don’t know what it is, but I just hope you don't ever stop. I mean
it, Alaine. I want to be with you. Don’t you ever second guess that, alright?”

Alaine had heard him loud and clear, but her mind had already begun to slowly
drift away, so with a small sigh, she relaxed further into him and faintly
whispered in response before she fell asleep in his comforting embrace.

        “Okay.”
******

   Sometime after nine o'clock in the morning, Sam came knocking on Dean and
Alaine’s motel door. It took him a few tries before he heard his brother's
groggy voice muttering a curse from the other side of the door as he padded
through the room. After a couple of minutes, it swung open to reveal a tired
looking Dean, dressed only into a pair of boxer briefs while his short hair lay
a disheveled mess.

Dean frowned at his brother as he stifled a yawn. “What do you want, Sam?”

        “We gotta roll out soon. You should start getting ready.”

He groaned in annoyance as he pressed his forehead to the door frame. “Can't
you give me another hour?”

        “Dean we need to leave now,” Sam exasperated. “I'll wait for you in the
other room. Don’t take long.”

Grunting in complaint, he waved him off as he shut the door. Turning towards
the bed, he walked back over to it and stretched himself across the mattress as
he blew out a long sigh.

From beside him, the bed softly dipped with the weight of Alaine’s body
shifting around as she moved closer to him to wrap an arm around his bare
torso.

        “Hey, baby,” Dean murmured as she pressed herself up against the side
of his body and draped her leg across his waist.

         “Do you have to go?” she softly whined as she nuzzled against his
bicep and pressed a kiss to his skin.

         “Yeah. Sammy gets pretty impatient. The guy hates waiting.”

With a groan in protest, Alaine moved so that she was astride him with her
naked body pressed flushed to his as she sweetly pecked his chin.

         “Well, I say make him wait anyway.”

Chuckling softly, he let his hands guide themselves to her backside, his
fingertips digging into the firm flesh and squeezing as he pressed her down
against his now hardened erection.

         “You see what you do to me, sweetheart?” he gruffly murmured. “Now you
made me want you.”

Alaine flattened her palms against his chest as she lifted her upper body off
of him to glance down into his smoldering countenance. With a small smirk, she
slowly ground herself against him.

         “So then what are you waiting for, baby? Just take me.”

With a fervent growl, Dean abruptly threw her off of him, pinning her to the
bed by her wrists with one hand as he freed his erection from the confines of
his underwear and slipped himself inside of her.
******
    For the three Hunters, the day consisted of speaking to the families of the
missing men and gathering as much information they could in order to have a
solid understanding of what they were dealing with. Alaine busied herself for
hours at the sheriff's station, searching through old case files of suicides
and drownings until she came across the name of one woman in particular who's
death fit the description of the creature perfectly. She sneakily made a copy
of the file to take back to the motel before speed dialing Dean's number on her
cellphone.

         “Talk to me, sweetheart,” his voice spoke from the other line.

Slipping the papers into the inside of her navy blazer, she casually made her
way out of the station.

         “I know who the Rusalka is. Her name was Megan Schwartz, young girl
with a bright future ahead of her. She had a full scholarship to Harvard, ended
up getting knocked up before her first semester ever started. The douchebag who
did it was the one who killed her. He took her out on a camping trip and
drowned her in the lake. Of course, he was stupid enough to get caught and was
given the maximum sentence for first degree murder.”

         “How long has he been in prison?”

         “So far, eight months.”

         “Alright, were gonna have to find a way to deal with this thing. Sam
and I are wrappin’ things up over on our end, we'll meet you back at the motel
in half an hour before the sun goes down, then we'll head out to the woods.”

        “Got it, I'll see you later.”

        “See you later, baby.”

Hanging up the call, Alaine jumped into the stolen 65’ Chevy Mustang she had
hotwired earlier and drove off towards the motel to change out of her FBI
costume and into her regular clothes. Shortly after the brothers arrived, they
dressed out of their suits and quickly assembled the items they needed to take
down the Rusalka. Rock salt rounds, iron rounds, lighter fluid, matches–they
were armed and ready.
They discussed the details of the case for a few minutes before heading into
the Impala and driving to the forest. Once there, they parked the car not too
far off from the entrance and gathered around the trunk to take out the
necessary weapons.
Each of them grabbed their own firearms along with a flashlight and agreed to
split up into different directions. Sam would go north while Dean and Alaine
took the west and east ends of the forest. They agreed to rendezvous somewhere
in the middle to take on the south end if neither of them came into contact
with the creature. After parting ways, they each went into their own separate
directions with their flashlights lighting the way.
******

   It was eerily quiet. There was an absence of sound surrounding Dean. No
gentle rustling of leaves, no critters scurrying around the ground. It was all
just so… silent. If he listened hard enough, he was almost sure he'd be able to
hear his own heart beating from within his chest and that fact alone had him on
high alert. It wasn’t natural for a forest that big to be so noiseless in the
dead of night.
With his flashlight, he illuminated the small dirt path ahead of him as he
began to tread deeper into the thicket of trees. The further he went, the more
narrow the path got which meant he was heading into a direction where people
wouldn’t normally go. He clutched his pistol tightly in his hand as he slipped
through the gap of two large oak trees that had been blocking his way.
When on the other side, he readjusted his flashlight and shone the light
directly ahead of him as he continued to cautiously move forward. By this
point, the soft light of the moon that had been shining down onto the forest
had now been completely blocked out by the thick tree branches that shot
upwards towards the sky. After several long minutes of endless walking, Dean
stopped to turn back around when from behind him, an unexpected sound came
flowing through the air.

        “What the hell?” he murmured to himself, waving the flashlight all
around him.

Deep from inside the thicket, the sound could be heard getting louder. It first
had started off like an inaudible whisper but as he strained his ears harder to
listen, it became clear to him what it was.

It was singing.

Almost immediately after realizing that, Dean became entranced. All sense of
purpose had completely vanished from within him, leaving him empty and void of
all thoughts as the soft, hypnotizing female voice invaded his mind.

Come to me… Come to me.

He unconsciously dropped both his flashlight and gun onto the ground as his
hands then moved into his pockets to rid himself of his phone. Leaving it
behind on the grass with everything else, he slowly began to walk off further
into the thicket as the unyielding need to obey the commands of the voice
controlled his every thoughts and movements.
******
 
    Time had gone by of Alaine aimlessly walking around before she decided to
double back to the rendezvous point. Taking out her cell, she checked for
reception and saw that she had enough signal to make a phone call. She speed
dialed Dean and waited for him to pick up, but after the sixth ring, the call
went to voicemail. Finding it odd, she decided to dial him one more time, but
again, there was no answer. It was very unlikely for him to ignore any calls
unless he was extremely busy, or in grave danger. Automatically, Alaine’s
instincts told her there was something terribly wrong. She picked up the pace
and began to jog steadily through the woods as she scrolled through her
contacts and called Sam.

         “Hey—“ his voice had begun to say before she quickly cut him short.

         “There's something wrong,” she rushed out. “Dean's not answering his
phone.”

         “Okay. His GPS should be on. I'll track his phone. Meet me back where
we started and we'll go and look for him.”

Hanging up the phone, Alaine now began to sprint, her fear of something
happening to Dean fueling her body with adrenaline as she hastily made her way
back out into the open.

When she met up with Sam, they immediately headed off towards the direction
Dean took to and followed the arrow on Sam's phone which indicated his last
location. They walked as quickly as they could through the thicket until they
came upon the spot where the GPS signal finally stopped. They waved their
flashlights around in the ground by their feet until Sam called out from behind
her.

         “Alaine.”

Whipping around, she turned to face him to see him crouched down onto the balls
of his feet as he picked something up from the grass. When she looked at what
he now held in his hand, her heart stopped.

Dean's cellphone.

        “His flashlight and gun are here too,” Sam spoke as his eyes briefly
scanned around his surroundings. “He must've dropped them and took off to God
knows where.”

Alaine’s chest tightened with uncontrollable worry as her mind ran with endless
possibilities of what could've happened to him.

         “He wouldn’t leave his gun behind like that. We have to find him, Sam.
He could be in danger.”

Standing upright once more, he shoved his brother's phone into his pocket
before grabbing up everything else from the ground and clutching it in his
hands.

         “We will,” he reassured. “Come on. He couldn’t have gone too far.”

Using their flashlights to light the way, they continued their walk through the
dense thicket, the overpowering smell of nature almost being too much for them
to bare as more and more trees surrounded them from all around. As time passed,
both Sam and Alaine’s worry increased as they began to call out to Dean in
hopes that maybe he'd hear them if he were to be nearby, but it was to no
avail.

After forty minutes of endless walking, Sam was beginning to believe it to be
near impossible to locate Dean and was about to suggest they head back to the
Impala and wait out for the sun to rise when from a few yards away, the opening
of a large clearing came into view.

        “Alaine, look.”

She immediately fixed her gaze onto the spot that he had been pointing over to
and was filled with hope once more. They hurriedly made their way through the
forest until coming upon a small hill leading down to the grassy bank of a
large lake. From where they stood atop the hill, they could see the light of
the moon reflecting off of the gentle ripples of the water as a crisp breeze
whipped all around them and rustled the leaves of the trees above. It was a
serene, almost enchanting sight.

Alaine’s eyes hand wandered all around until her gaze landed on the figure of a
man at the bottom of the hill, slowly approaching the bank.

It was him.

         “Dean!” she called out, relief flooding her heart as she took in a
deep breath.

Sam focused his gaze to where his brother was when suddenly, something from
inside the water caught his immediate attention. As he stared harder, his
entire body went rigid with awareness.

         “Alaine—“

She had completely ignored him as she went to call out to her boyfriend again.

         “Dean!”

The sound of his name being yelled had been enough to snap him out of the
trance he had been under. His mind quickly adjusted to his surroundings as he
began to look all around, confusion settling inside of him as he realized where
he was. Turning to face the hill, he looked up and saw Alaine standing at the
very top with his brother right beside her, both of them bearing distinct
facial expressions.

        “H—how the hell did I get here?” he called out to them.

As Alaine went to respond to his question, something behind him caught her eye.
From inside of the lake, she saw a pale, slender figure begin to slowly rise up
from its depths with long, golden hair draping down its shoulders and a
menacing glare reflecting through its green, glowing eyes.

Immediately, Alaine knew what she was looking at.

         “Dean, watch out!” Sam yelled.

Before Dean could get the chance to react, a pair of hands clamped around his
ankles and yanked him backwards. His arms instinctively flailed in an attempt
to brace the fall, but his chest had smacked the ground with force, causing the
air to get knocked right out of his lungs as his head whipped back.
He let out a strangled groan as a stinging pain spread up the side of his neck
and his vision blackened. There was a slight ringing in his ears that muffled
the sounds of his brother and girlfriend screaming out his name as he struggled
to grab onto a nearby tree root that protruded from beneath the grass, but as
his fingers managed to wrap around it, his body was violently yanked once more.

         “S-Sam,” he weakly screamed as the creature battled against his
strength.

Sam and Alaine were now running at full speed down the hill as they bolted on
over towards the lake. When they reached Dean, they dropped their flashlights
onto the ground and grabbed onto his arms in an attempt to haul him away. They
dug their heels into the ground and pulled with all their might but the
creature wouldn’t relent. It withheld its strong grip of Dean's legs and it was
all a matter of tug of war now.

As Sam and Alaine held on for dear life, the Rusalka made an inhuman noise
before it sunk its vicious, razor-like nails into the back of Dean’s left thigh
and secured its grip which forced out an earsplitting scream from deep within
his chest as this searing, white hot pain shot up his leg.

         “Dean!” Alaine frantically yelled.

He gazed up into her frightened eyes, his face contorted in sheer, unmistakable
anguish as she tightened her grasp on his arm even further.

         “I got you,” she huffed. “I won't let go!”

At that exact moment, the Rusalka pulled him once more, this time using all of
its supernatural strength to finally break their hold of him.

Sam and Alaine came crashing down to the ground onto their backs as Dean was
ripped from their hands and dragged towards the lake.

         “Dean!” Sam screamed out as he quickly dived for his brother's arms
that were reaching out for him.

        “Sammy!”

Clutching onto Dean's bicep, Sam fought as hard as he could to pull him back
out but his strength alone wasn’t enough.

Dean clamped onto his brother's forearm with both hands and held on tight as
Sam grunted loudly in frustration.

         “Hold on!”

         “I'm tryin’!” Dean yelled back.

Alaine came up from behind Sam and wrapped her arms around his torso, adding
onto the weight on their side as the Rusalka pulled harder from the other end.

        “Dammit!” she screamed angrily as she sunk the heels of her riding
boots into the dirt and locked her arms around Sam's waist.

Dean cried out once more as he felt the painful straining of his muscles
tightening as if they were about to snap.

         “She's gonna rip me in half. Let go!”

         “No!” Sam barked at his brother. “I'm not letting go.”

         “Do it, Sam!”

         “No, I won't—“
 
        “I said do it!” Dean roared as another pained scream tore through him.

Sam reluctantly gazed down into his big brother's eyes that stared up at him
with reassurance.

         “Let go, Sammy.”

From behind him, Alaine’s voice screamed out.
 
        “No. Don’t you dare let him go!”

         “Do as I say, Sam,” Dean commanded through clenched teeth as the pain
became all the more difficult for him to bare.
 
        “No!” Alaine helplessly cried again, her arms squeezing Sam tighter.

         “This thing ain't gonna let me go, do it now!”

Alaine screamed in protest once more, but her pleading cries fell on deaf ears
as Sam's grip unraveled and they came tumbling back down onto the ground.

Sam landed on top of her with a breathless huff and before she could throw his
massive body off of her, Dean was already being dragged underwater.

         “No!” she wailed as she pushed Sam away. “Why would you listen to
him!”

         “Alaine, wait!”

Sam quickly attempted to grab hold of her as he reached out an arm but Alaine
had managed to scramble back onto her feet and was now running into the lake
and diving into the water. He hastily jumped up as he grabbed up her shotgun
and watched in horror as she disappeared from view. 

From underneath the surface of the lake, Alaine was holding her breath as best
as she could as she dove deep into its depths. It was too dark for her to
clearly see anything around her but she trudged onwards, her need for air
meaning little to her as every nerve in her body screamed at her to go forward.
As she swam deeper, more and more algae-like plants started to surrounded her.
She tried her best to maneuver around them but one plant had caught onto the
buckle of her boot and entangled itself around her leg. She frantically tried
to free herself, her mind briefly panicking and her lungs constricting as the
lack of oxygen now came dangerously close to knocking her unconscious, but to
her luck the plant snapped in half. She quickly unraveled it from around her
and pushed herself further towards her limit as she swam even deeper into the
lake.
With the force of gravity now against her, the weight of the water heavily
pushed down on every muscle of her body as she put all of her strength into her
arms and legs and just as she felt herself coming close to giving out, she
caught a small glimpse of a glimmering green light just a few feet away from
her.

Her mind had been quick enough to assess what it was before a boost of
adrenaline surged through her and she was swimming faster than what she had
been just moments before. As she came closer to the light, the Rusalka whirled
it's head in her direction, it's glowing eyes zeroing in on Alaine as it held
onto Dean's limp body. It immediately released him and bolted towards Alaine
with its claws extended and ready to attack. 

Alaine had been fortunate to see what was coming for her and she quickly
reacted by pulling out an iron knife from the inside of her jacket that she had
snatched from the Bunker's dungeon. Without hesitating, she plunged it into the
creature's face and watched as the skin burned and sizzled and the Rusalka
cowered away in pain.
She immediately took advantage of the opportunity to swim over to Dean’s body
that had been floating nearby and grabbed his head into her hands to look into
his unconscious face. She wasted no time in pressing her mouth to his in an
attempt to breath into him some of the last bit of air she had left to breathe
before she grabbed onto the collar of his jacket and began to swim back up
towards the surface.

Back on the bank, Sam had been standing by for over three minutes, fear and
panic eating away at him as he helplessly waited for Alaine to resurface, but
as time ticked away without a sign that she and his brother were going to make
it out alive, he began to lose all shred of hope. Then, at that very instant,
his eyes landed on the sight of Alaine’s head bursting out as her mouth fell
open and she gasped loudly for air.
He saw her begin to swim over towards him as she hauled Dean behind her and
that was all he needed as an incentive to go running into the lake after them.
He stopped right when the water hit his thighs and waited for her to get close
enough for him to grab Dean and drag him over towards the bank.
As he dropped his brother down onto the grass, he kneeled beside him as Alaine
hurriedly crawled over him and straddled his hips. She was still heaving for
air as she flattened her palms over the center of his chest and forcibly
pressed down over and over again before leaning forward to pinch his airway
shut and blowing into his mouth. Sam sat idly by, watching her preform CPR in
an attempt to revive his brother, but as her efforts went on with no result, a
heartbreaking realization began to settle in his gut.

         “Alaine,” he murmured in a trembling voice as she folded her hands
together and began to pound onto Dean's chest.

         “H—he's not dead,” she exclaimed, her voice frantic. “I have to keep
trying.”

And try she did, taking deep breaths every now and again to blow air into his
lungs as her hands relentlessly continued to compress his chest. She went on to
do this for two whole minutes and just as Sam was about to speak up again,
Dean's body had suddenly jerked awake, catching them both by surprise.

He gasped loudly for air, his chest heaving as he began to breathlessly cough
up all of the water that had flooded his lungs all the while his brother and
girlfriend stared at him in relief.

Alaine quickly cupped the back of his neck and brought him up into a sitting
position to aid his breathing as she smoothed her hand over his jaw.

        “That’s it,” she encouraged as he coughed and gasped some more. “Just
breathe, baby.”

Dean tried to speak but all that came out of him was a dry, wheezing sound as
his hands clutched onto Alaine’s shoulders for support. It took a moment for
his airways to open up once more but when they did, he was dragging in long,
deep breaths of air as his body slowly regained its strength.

Sam and Alaine had been watching him the entire time and when his eyes met
their faces, he was welcomed by the sight of their liberated expressions.

        “You scared the hell out of us, man,” Sam laughed dryly as he reached
out to pat his brother on the back. “Glad you're back.”

Dean's gaze drifted over to Alaine to see her brows begin to furrow into a
slight frown. Before he could attempt to ask her what was wrong, her hands
cupped his cheeks into her palms as she leaned forward and crashed her lips to
his. He let out a small chuckle before another coughing fit returned.

Pulling away slightly, she smiled down at him.
 
        “Don’t you dare do that again,” she commanded in a authoritative tone.
“You hear me, Winchester?”

Cracking a smile, Dean let out a soft chuckle.       

        “Maybe I should drown more often if it'll get this sort of reaction out
of you.”
 
       “Dean—“ she warned, shooting him a glare.

        “Sorry–I meant yes ma'am.”

Sam let out a laugh as he slowly rose to his feet. “Well, I'm glad that's
over.”

Dean quizzically stared up at his brother. “Over? You mean the thing's dead?”

That questioned had been answered not by Sam or Alaine but by the Rusalka
itself when it suddenly appeared behind the younger Winchester. Grabbing him by
his shoulder, it hauled him back and flung him into a nearby tree as it stalked
its way over to Dean and Alaine.

Alaine quickly reacted by crawling away from Dean to grab her shotgun that lay
nearby when out of nowhere, the creature grabbed her by the nape and yanked her
up off the ground. She cried out as it pulled her by her wet hair and lifted
her up in the air so that her legs dangled helplessly.

         “Dean!” she wailed as the Rusalka let out a bone chilling snarl before
its other hand clamped around her throat.
Dean got to his feet as quickly as he could, swooping up the shotgun and
cocking it as he tightened his grip on the fore-end.

         “Let her go, you son of a bitch!”

The creature only snarled again at the sound of his demand as it shielded
itself by putting Alaine’s body in front it. Slowly, it began to back away
towards the lake as Dean's shotgun remained trained on it.

Alaine screamed once more as she fought to free herself from the Rusalka’s
clutches.

        “Dammit! I can't get a clear shot,” Dean yelled.

Sam had managed to get onto his feet and had reached for his pistol that had
been tucked away into the waistband of his jeans. He aimed it at the creature
and waited for an opening before he fired off three rounds, all which had hit
the Rusalka in the torso.

On impact, it let out a piercing shrill before it dropped Alaine onto the
ground and fell over backwards. As Dean ran to her aid, Sam emptied out his
entire clip of consecrated iron bullets into the creature before pulling out a
bottle of lighter fluid from his jacket and wasting no time in dousing the
Rusalka with it and setting it ablaze.

Immediately, the creature went up in flames, its high pitched screams filling
the air along with the smell of burning, rotting flesh as it thrashed around
and struggled to make its way back into the lake, but eventually its efforts
died down just as the fire consumed it until nothing had been left but a cloud
of smoke as it, along with the flames, dissipated into complete nothingness.

        “Now it's over,” Dean spoke a few moments later as he carefully helped
Alaine back onto her feet.

Sam turned to face them as Dean cupped her face into his calloused palms.

        “You alright, sweetheart?”

Alaine lovingly gazed up into his bright, green eyes before she softly nodded.

         “Yeah. Let's get the hell out of here.”

With a chuckle, Dean went to move when a loud, strangled groan escaped him as
he collapsed into her.

She swiftly wrapped her arms around his torso to catch him as he balanced
himself by holding onto her shoulders.

        “Dean, what's wrong?” she worriedly asked.

He cursed under his breath as he let out another groan of discomfort.
 
       “It's my leg. The pain just kicked in and I don’t think I can walk.”
 
      “I got him, Alaine,” Sam quickly offered as he came up beside his brother
and curled an arm around his back.

Putting all of his weight onto him, Dean steadied himself and tightly clutched
onto Sam when a strange, unpleasant smell smacked him right in the face.

         “Dude,” he huffed, grimacing at Sam. “You smell like crap.”

Brow raised, Sam let out a small laugh. “I think you're smelling your own
funk.”

Making a face, Dean sniffed himself and that’s when the pungent stench wafted
through the air again and invaded his nostrils, this time causing his stomach
to do a back flip.

         “God. That's bad,” he almost gagged as he cupped his nose with his
left hand. “I can't get inside of Baby smellin’ like this, I'm gonna stink her
up.”

        “You'll get over it,” Alaine scoffed with a smile as she came up beside
them holding onto  their and flashlights and her shotgun. “Besides, I'm pretty
sure she's smelled way worse than this with you two riding around inside for
days at a time, am I right?”

Dean went to respond when Sam suddenly nudged him in the ribs.
 
       “Dean, don't,” he murmured in warning, but his brother had went on to
disregard him as he turned to her with a smile of his own.

       “Oh, heck yeah. I thought my B.O was bad, but Sammy? The guy sweats like
a dog. Try gettin’ the smell of musk and hot, sweaty-“

       “Dean,” Sam snapped in urgency as an exasperated look swept across his
face.

Dean glanced between Sam and Alaine, both of their expressions contrasting each
others–hers reading utter amusement whereas Sam's displayed pure annoyance.

         “What?” Dean asked in confusion. “What'd I say?”

Alaine chuckled softly before leaning over to press a kiss to his cheek and
moving to walk ahead of them up the hill and back towards the dense thicket.
******

    After leaving Iowa, the three of them tiredly made their way back home to
the Bunker. The drive had been almost entirely silent as both Dean and Alaine
took the time to rest their eyes all the while Sam maintained his razor-sharp
focus on the road.
Dean had let his brother take over the wheel, being that he was way too
exhausted to stay awake for the seven hour drive back to Kansas. He had climbed
into the back with Alaine and stretched himself across the seats with her
comfortably laying on top of him. It wasn’t until hours later that Sam had
woken them up with the smell of breakfast.

Dean's head had instantly peaked up as he rubbed at his eyes.

         “Coffee?” he tiredly asked in the form of a small grumble.

Glancing into the backseat, Sam extended him a fresh cup along with a brown
paper bag.

         “I figured you two might want something to eat so I stopped to grab
some food and fill up the tank.”

As Dean adjusted himself to sit upright, Alaine softly groaned as she curled
her arms around his waist and nuzzled into his stomach.

        “Rise and shine, baby. Sammy got us some grub.”

Taking the items from his brother, he set the bag down onto the car floor as he
took a long sip from the cardboard cup and sighed in content.

       “Too tired,” she softly whined.

       “You better hurry before I drink up all the coffee,” he teased as he
slipped a hand into her hair and gently massaged the back of her skull.

Alaine let out a quiet moan as she pressed her face directly into the crotch of
his jeans.

       “Save me some, papi.”

There goes that damn word again, he thought to himself as heat surged
throughout his veins. It didn’t matter what she said, the sound of her speaking
Spanish was more than enough to have him standing at full attention which at
this very moment, he was. He clenched his jaw as her fingers traveled
underneath his T-shirt to trail across his waist as she nuzzled her cheek
against his straining erection.

        “Crap,” Sam muttered as he shifted around in the driver's seat. “I'll
be back. Forgot to grab something.”

Dean watched his brother jump out of the car and hurriedly make his way back
into the gas station as Alaine’s nails softly raked across his back.

        “Someone's getting excited,” she playfully teased as she turned her
head to glance up into his face. She bit her lip softly as she moved her hand
from underneath his shirt and flattened her palm over his groin.

Reflexively, Dean's hard member twitched against her touch as she massaged him
over the material of his jeans.

        “Babe, what are you doin’?” he groaned as he lowered his gaze to hers.
“Sam can come back at any second.”

At the realization of that, her eyes lit up as a mischievous smirk danced
across her face. She adjusted herself so that she was wedged between him and
the back of the seats and her upper body was being supported onto her right
forearm. With a soft smile, she licked her lips and trailed her fingers over to
the buckle of his belt and deftly undid it along with the button to his jeans.

Dean felt the anticipation begin to rise inside of him as she pulled down his
zipper and reached into his pants to grab a hold of his erection over the
fabric of his boxer briefs.

        “Shit,” he gruffly murmured as she gripped him hard. “You keep doin’
that and I'm gonna end up comin’ all over myself.”

With a moan of excitement, Alaine quickly reached into his underwear and before
Dean could even utter another word, her small hand had wrapped itself around
his thick shaft and gave his entire length one good, slow pump.

        “That's exactly what I was hoping for,” she whispered before pulling
him out of the confines of his boxer briefs and lowering her head to swirl the
tip of her tongue around the crown of his erection.

He let out a groan through clenched teeth as her lips wrapped around him and
gently sucked. He barely even registered himself setting down the cup of coffee
right next to the brown paper bag as his mind quickly became entranced by the
breathtaking sensation of her devouring him.
As she steadily bobbed her head up and down, Dean's hand moved to grab a
handful of her hair at the nape as the spring inside of his core tightly
coiled. He groaned and cursed as she tantalizingly guided him towards his peak
with every hard suck and flick of her tongue.Dean desired nothing more than to
let her take control, but time wasn’t on their side. At any given second they
would be interrupted and although he wanted to prolong the moment, there was
just no other option but to end it quick, so without warning, he cupped the
side of her face with his free hand as he firmly planted his right foot down
onto the car floor and began to thrust into her mouth.
Alaine mindfully braced her hand over his bandaged thigh as he held her head
immobile and relentlessly pumped his hips.

It wasn't long until every single nerve inside of his body began to tremble
uncontrollably with the force of the mind-numbing shockwaves that pulsed
through his veins as he dived off of the edge and plummeted right into a
powerful orgasm that completely took over all of his senses. With a loud grunt
and a cry of her name, Dean came undone, his hips stalling as he emptied
himself completely into the back of her throat. He gave another slow thrust
before pulling out of her mouth and throwing his head back against the window
as he let out a satisfied groan.

         “Dammit, baby,” he breathlessly growled, still holding her head in his
hands. “You're too friggin' good.”

With a girlish chuckle, Alaine carefully tucked him back into his underwear
before redoing the zipper and button of his jeans as well as his belt.

         “And looks like we made it just in time.”

Dean dropped his head to glance at her, a small smirk playing on his lips as
his eyes looked upon her with a hint of playfulness.

        “You're so gonna get it when we get home.”

        “I'm really counting on that,” she murmured, leaning forward to press a
soft kiss to his lush mouth that he more than willingly returned.

At that moment, the car door creaked open and in came Sam, settling down in
front of the wheel and tossing a plastic bag onto the passenger seat next to
him before shifting around to glance into the back.

         “So, we're not too far from the Bunker. We should be getting home in
about an hour, hour and a half tops.”

Dean smiled at his brother as he moved his hands from Alaine’s face to curl his
arms around her and pull her into his chest.

         “Sounds good, but lets try to make it in less time. I got some stuff I
need to get to.”

Alaine knew very well what he had just been referring to but Sam, oblivious as
always, gave him a small nod as he shifted back around and switched the car out
of park to resume their journey back to Lebanon.

Nuzzling into the crook of his neck, she pressed a small kiss to the base of
his throat before sinking her teeth into his skin and nipping him ever so
gently. She felt his chest vibrate with the force of an almost inaudible groan
as he lowered his head to whisper into her ear.

        “You're bein’ a real bad girl, you know that? You're messin’ with me
and I can't do a damn thing about it. Do you have any idea what that's doin’ to
me?”

Alaine tilted her head up so that her lips brushed across the long stubble of
his angled jaw as she circled the tip of her tongue around his earlobe, knowing
all too well that was one of the many things that drove him wild with
uncontrollable lust.

        “Not in the slightest,” she softly murmured in a taunting tone.

A small shudder ran down his spine, causing the hairs at the back of his neck
to stand on end as his core reflexively tightened.

         “Keep teasin’ me and I'll make sure you won't be able to sit or walk
straight for weeks,” he growled, his gruff voice laced with repressed carnal
hunger.

         “Is that a promise?” she asked

Dean flickered his eyes over towards his brother to make sure he wasn’t
listening or paying any attention to them before he slid his hand over the deep
curve of her waist and settled it onto her ample backside. He gave it one good,
hard squeeze and Alaine buried her face into his shoulder in an attempt to hush
the sound of a soft moan that just so happened to escape her as she gripped
onto his bicep.

         “Sweetheart, don’t tempt me,” he warned in a hushed tone. “I've been
goin’ real easy on you. Don't think for a second that I ain't capable of
tearin’ that pretty little cunt of yours to shreds ‘cause I sure as hell can.”

The words he had just spoken sent a sharp jolt of electricity straight down to
her core and Alaine pressed her thighs tightly together in efforts of ceasing
the throbbing she felt in between her legs as every nerve in her body thrummed
with anticipation and unbearable yearning.

        “I can be rough just as I can be gentle and trust me, you really don’t
want to see that other side of me. I've been doin’ my best to hold myself back
from hurting you, so for your own safety I suggest you play nice and behave
before you get a taste of just how ruthless I can be.”

Alaine felt like she was in a daze. His bluntness had ultimately stunned her,
leaving her completely speechless. She believed him. She had a pretty good idea
of what he was truly capable of and although a part of her was afraid of just
how aggressive he could get, she couldn't help but to continue to eagerly poke
at the dominant side of him in hopes that it'd turn out to be just what she had
been hoping for. But for the time being, she decided not to say anything
further. Instead, she slowly pulled away from him to adjust herself into a
sitting position.

Dean cautiously shifted his body, giving her the room to sit comfortably beside
him as he sat upright and sunk back into the leather seat. His eyes flickered
over to her face as she leaned forward to pick up the brown paper bag and
coffee cup that sat on the car floor by his feet. When she moved to sit back
once more, her gaze drifted over to him and locked onto his smoldering
countenance.

They held one another's stare, the promise of his warning weighing heavy around
them as it brought a newfound desire crackling to life inside of Alaine. She
let out an unsteady exhale as he ravaged her with his fierce gaze. It was a
look she had seen on him before, but this time there was this almost palpable
intensity in his green eyes that downright left her feeling breathless and
somewhat uneasy. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat before tearing her gaze
away from his intimidating face to look at the items she held in her lap.

Smirking to himself, Dean reached out a hand and settled it over her knee,
giving it a gentle squeeze as he leaned in closer to press a kiss to her
temple.

For the remainder of the ride, the three Hunters chatted, joked and laughed
with one another to pass the time until Sam finally rolled the Impala into the
Bunker's underground garage. Once he parked it into its usually spot, Dean
eased himself out and cautiously rounded the back to pop open the trunk.

Sam followed suit, making his way over to where his brother stood to grab up
his things before patting him on the back and heading inside.

Dean had been hunched over the trunk, rummaging through its many contents as
Alaine got out of the car and walked over to the trunk.

She stood a few feet away, just watching him as he reorganized his arsenal of
weapons. It wasn’t until seconds later of her quietly standing there that
Dean's voice playfully called out to her.

         “You gonna stare at me all night or what?”

Ducking his head from underneath the trunk door, he stood upright and settled
his gaze over her soft, flawless features as he turned to face her.

Her expression was solemn, her brows drawn together in thought as her eyes bore
into his.

By the look on her face, Dean already knew there was something on her mind that
she was trying to say.

         “What's the matter, sweetheart?” he asked.

She looked upon him, her head swirling with the numerous thoughts that jumped
back and forth inside of her brain. “Nothing. I – I just…”

With a reassuring smile, Dean carefully stepped up to her, his hand reaching
out to cup her cheek into his palm as he tilted her head up.       

         “Hey, talk to me. What's goin’ on?”

She gazed up into his bright eyes and found herself falling captive to the
breathtaking beauty they withheld as she did every single time she stared into
them.

         “I–I almost lost you last night,” she softly murmured. “You have no
idea how freaking scared I was.

Dean felt his heart constrict with emotion at the sound of the sincere fear in
her voice.    

        “I could imagine,” he soothingly empathized as he slipped his fingers
into her hair. “I'm sorry for doin’ that to you but in my mind I had a plan. I
knew either you or Sam would've saved me so that's why I told him to let go. It
was stupid, but it worked.”

       “It was extremely stupid!” she snapped, her expression becoming stern as
she grabbed his face into her small hands and gazed up at him. “Don't ever do
something like that again. I mean it, Dean. I will kick your ass, you hear me?”

He stared into her loving eyes and nodded in understanding as a small smile
tugged at the corners of his lips.

         “I hear you, babe.”

She let out a small sigh. “Good. Now, come on. Let's get inside so we can
change that bandage on your leg and get some rest. God knows we need it.”

After making their way into the main quarters, they showered and prepared
themselves for bed. As Dean lied there with her snuggled up in his arms already
fast asleep, he began to think to himself. Why would she care so much about
him? Why would she be so afraid of losing him? Did he really mean that much to
her? There was a clear answer to all of those questions, an answer he hadn't
thought of until now.

She loved him.

The realization of that caused his heart to constrict with emotion. But why? If
she did love him, what was her reason? What could he have done for something
like this to happen?

Dean couldn’t help but feel confused and insecure. He was nothing, he was
nobody. He was a broken and worn out man who had nothing to offer, nothing to
give. Why would anyone love him? Why would anyone be willing to share in his
misery and suffering? Why would they chose to settle for him? 
The more that his mind swirled with those questions, the more pain he began to
feel. The pain of his past mistakes and failures, the pain of the disappointed
faces of those he's loved, the pain of the people he's hurt – it was a heavy
burden for him to carry and he was tired of it all. He was tired of being sick
and tired and wanted nothing more than to break free.
He wanted to let it all go but the sad truth was that he lacked the emotional
strength needed to do so. He couldn't do it on his own and knew that the only
way to escape was through loving Alaine. Her love would be the very thing to
free him, to save him from himself. He needed her light, her goodness. He
needed all that she was in order to be at peace with himself so no matter what
happened, regardless of what would get thrown his way, he was going to hold
onto her because without her, he would forever be hopeless and lost.
***** Chapter Twelve *****
Chapter Notes
     WARNING: Smut, smut, allll the smut. A bit of Dom!Dean taking control
     (nothing too wild, I promise.) Things get real hot and heavy, so
     buckle in tight ‘cause this is gonna be one hell of a ride.
    Time had flown by; days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months. The
end of summer had transitioned into the fall to then disappear as winter
quickly took over, claiming its territory over the state of Kansas by
blanketing it in a thick sheet of snow. Roads had been blocked off, schools
cancelled–it was the end of January and the small town of Lebanon looked as if
it had been completely deserted.
Most establishments, such as bars and diners had ceased their regular working
hours while everyone sought refuge from the seemingly-eternal winter storm. It
would be thought that if there was anyone bold enough to be roaming about in
the intolerable ten degree weather that tormented the town, they'd have to be
downright insane, and if not, possibly even suicidal. Luckily, for Dean
Winchester, no one was around to categorize him as such as he guided his
beloved Impala down the desolate highway leading back into Lebanon with his
brother riding shotgun.

They had left the Bunker six days ago to go on a hunt in the hot and sunny
state of New Mexico while Alaine had been forced to stay behind to recover from
a bad case of the flu. She had wittingly tried to negotiate with the eldest
Winchester to allow her to tag along, but if there was one trait they
undoubtedly shared as a couple, it was that the both of them were equally just
as stubborn as the other.

             “Come on, Dean!” Alaine objected through another coughing fit as
Dean gently pushed her back down into mattress.

             “Nuh-uh, we're not doin’ this right now. You're staying put and
that’s it.”

As he moved to tuck her in again for the fifth time that night, she slapped his
hands away and jutted back upright into a sitting position.

             “You're not being fair!” she whined as she dropped her arms down
to her sides in a childlike manner. “You can't keep me here. I deserve to go on
this hunt, especially since I was the one who found it.”

Dean sighed. “I know, baby. But I won't be able to watch over you and focus on
huntin’ this skinwalker at the same time. You're better off just stayin’ at
home and getting’ your rest.”

            “I can take care of myself, you know. I don’t need you to babysit
me; I have the flu, not a life-threatening disease.”

            “For once in your life would you just listen to me?” he exasperated
as he gazed down into her puffy red eyes. “You’re not in tip-top shape to be
runnin’ around on a case. Be a good girl and do as I say. Sam and I’ll be back
before you know it.”

Alaine let out a grunt of protest as she sagged against the headboard and
folded her arms across her chest.

Dean’s stern countenance couldn’t help but falter as he watched her grumpily
turn her head and sigh heavily in annoyance. With a chuckle, he reached out and
cupped her rosy cheek into his calloused palm as he leveled his face to hers.

            “I swear, you’re like a friggin’ five year old.”

            “And you’re a real pain in my ass,” she mumbled in retort. “You’re
always bossing me around.”

            “It’s only ‘cause I care,” he murmured. Leaning in, he pressed a
tender kiss to her forehead, letting his lips linger there for a moment to
breath in her scent before pulling away to stand upright. “I’ll keep you posted
on what’s goin’ on, okay?”

Turning to glance up into his mystifying gaze, her heart softly fluttered in
her chest as he looked upon her with sheer, loving adoration.

            “Fine,” she sighed in resolve, finally giving into the dangerously-
beautiful man she now called hers. “I’ll listen this time.”

With a warm smile, Dean moved to the foot of the bed and grabbed up his packed
duffle bags. “Thank you. I’ll call you later, babe.”

            “Okay.”

            “Don’t have too much fun without me,” he winked before stepping out
into the Bunker’s hallway and closing the door shut behind him.

Although both Sam and Dean had fully intended on wrapping up the case as
quickly as possible, their stay in the small city of Valencia had been
prolonged as they came across difficulties in capturing and killing the
skinwalker. What should’ve been a two-day job had turned into a week-long case
until they finally managed to save the orphanage and take out the creature
without any resulting casualties.

It had been an unbearably long six days away from home, and the eldest
Winchester was beyond desperate to get back to his girl. He hadn’t been away
for long, but the separation always drove him insane with uncontrollable
longing whenever either one of them for whatever reason couldn't join in on a
hunt.
They'd text, talk over the phone, and video chat, but none of that ever eased
away the pain of being apart from her; if anything, it only made it the
distance all the more intolerable. Whenever she wasn’t by his side, Dean felt
as if he was living as a shadow of himself; as if there was a dark, bottomless
void inside of him that sucked the very life out of his being.

If only he had the guts to express to her exactly how he felt…

Sadly, for him, being an “open book” wasn't something he knew how to do, nor
was he comfortable with the idea of exposing his emotional vulnerabilities.
When it came to his own little brother, Dean would resort to masking whatever
was going on inside of him instead of opening up and speaking his mind. He’d
prefer to drown in a pool of his own misery than to appear weak before the eyes
of anyone and have them take pity on him. Although Sam was nothing but
empathetic towards his older brother, Dean still chose to keep to himself; he’d
ch0ose to carry the weight of his own burdens instead of dumping them onto the
shoulders of those that he loved. 

Dean Winchester wasn’t much of an expressive man. Displaying his emotions or
affection towards others wasn’t a thing he had ever been accustomed to doing
for the very reason that he had grown up to resemble his father in almost every
aspect. From John’s dominant character and authoritative demeanor, to his taste
in music, cars, and clothing – it could be said that Dean was the exact
reflection of the man. He had a loving nature, but just like his father, it was
deeply buried underneath all of the layers of pain and anguish that had managed
to pile up over the years.
For what seemed like an eternity, Dean had been content with the way he had
molded himself into the mirror image of John Winchester, but all it took was
for the love of one unique, and determined woman to slip its way through the
cracks of the protective barrier around his heart to change him in a way he had
never imagined would be possible.

For months on end, he’d attentively watch the ways in which Alaine expressed
her unspoken feelings for him; her loving stares when she'd admire him from
afar, her angry glares every time he'd do something that put his life at risk,
the glimmer of sadness in her eyes whenever they had to be apart from one
another–the feeling every single one of these things delivered him was
something that was entirely new to him.
Living now seemed much easier; he’d wake up every morning with a smile and
something to look forward to, which would be another amazing day of sharing
every aspect of his life with the woman of his dreams. There was absolutely
nothing that compared to the joy and serenity he felt in having her by his
side.
He hadn't known it to be possible to feel for someone the way he felt about
her; he hadn't known he would end up falling so hard to the point where his
entire life revolved solely around her, and although his newfound wave of
emotions had completely caught him off guard and knocked him off balance,
Alaine had been right there to hold him steady and keep him grounded. It hadn’t
hit him until recently just how much he truly needed her, and the realization
of that made him feel all the more terrified of losing her.

The warmth of her touch, the spark that her loving kisses always ignited, the
raging flame that coursed through his veins whenever they’d intimately become
one – there was just no way Dean could ever live without her.

In the short five-and-a-half months of them steadily dating, he had grown so
incredibly attached to her that the memories of his life before they crossed
one another’s paths again had miraculously begun to fade away. All of the
miserable thoughts that coursed through his mind on a day-to-day basis had been
pushed down into his subconscious, and into the light came an emotion he
believed he’d never get the chance to ever encounter.

Love.

Having her as a part of his life once more after nineteen long years brought
him all of the joy and happiness he had been missing for so very long, and
although he struggled with expressing himself, her love for him was something
he wouldn’t dare ever take for granted.

Alaine was his world, his peace, his sanctuary, his sanity, and right now, Dean
was on his way to the place he would forever call his one true home.

He was on his way into her loving embrace.

By the break of dawn, Dean had finally rolled the Impala into the underground
garage, and stationed it before gathering his bags out of the trunk and tiredly
padding his way through the Bunker on over towards his bedroom. As he reached
the closed door, he could see from the small opening of the vent at the bottom
that the room was dimly lit, which only meant that someone had to be inside.

Smiling softly to himself, he reached out to turn the knob and slowly pushed
the door open to reveal the welcoming sight of Alaine laying sprawled out on
her back directly in the center of the bed with the sheets draped over her
lower body as her gentle snores filled the air.

His smile widened further as he let out a small chuckle and proceeded to enter
the room. He shut the door behind him before moving over to where the desk was
to place his belongings on top of it. He draped his army green jacket over the
back of the wooden chair and toed off his boots all the while struggling to
contain his excitement of finally being back home as he moved over towards the
side of the bed and cautiously sat down on the edge with his body facing
Alaine.

Dean flattened his hands on either side of her as he lowered himself so that
his face hovered a few inches over hers. He let his eyes roam her peaceful
features as he drank in every bit of her breathtaking beauty. He observed the
way her chest softly rose and fell with every shallow breath, and marveled at
her almost surreal perfection.

Her plump parted lips, her thin brows, her thick, dark eyelashes, her long,
silky, chestnut waves, the endless curves of her body – she was beyond the
quintessential portrayal of flawlessness, and every inch of her was all his for
him to admire to his heart's content.

His beautiful girl.

With a soft sigh, Dean gently trailed his fingertips across her face, following
the path of his gaze as it traveled down from her tranquil countenance to the
base of her throat, and rested over the dip of her collarbone. He leaned in
closer, and with another sigh, he pressed his lips to her skin, his mind
quickly becoming dazed by her mesmerizing scent that dulled his senses as he
closed his eyes and nuzzled into her neck.

The sound of a groan came from underneath him as Alaine slowly stirred. She let
out a deep breath as her mind awakened to the familiarity of the aquatic aroma
filling her nose, and welcomed the gentle wave of body heat that washed over
her.

           “Dean,” she sighed, her hand reaching up to slip into the smooth,
short stands of his sandy brown hair. “You’re home.”

He pressed another gentle kiss to her clavicle and inhaled the soft lavender
fragrance that lingered over her skin as his hand skimmed past the curve of her
small breast to rest over her ribcage.

            “Did you miss me, sweetheart?”

Alaine let out a soft chuckle, her fingers digging into the crown of his skull
as his beard lightly tickled its way across her chest.

             “Of course I did.”

             “You mean it, babe?” he asked in a hushed tone, a small smirk now
forming on his face.

She chuckled once more as she began to squirm underneath him. “Yes, Dean. I
mean it.”

           “Doesn’t sound too convincing to me. Wanna try again?”

           “Dean,” she half whined as he peppered small kisses down the valley
of her breasts. “Stop, that tickles.”

            “I know.” Smiling, he slowly glided his hand across her ribcage and
gently pressed his fingertips into her side, eliciting the sound of a girlish
squeak from Alaine as her body bucked and pulled away in response.

            “Dean!”

She stared at him with wide eyes, the beautiful smile on his face warming her
insides as her heart fluttered wildly. She looked upon him and almost felt
herself melt into a puddle of mush underneath his piercing gaze as he laughed
out loud, the corners of his eyes crinkling with the throaty sound that
reverberated off the walls.

            “You couldn’t wake me up any other way, huh?” she asked, her smile
contrasting the annoyed tone of her voice as she sat up against the headboard.
“You see me here, peacefully asleep, and your first thought is: Let me tickle
her awake; that should do the trick. Seriously, Dean? Can’t a girl catch a
break?”

            “A break?” he scoffed with a grin as he moved to slip out of his
flannel overshirt. “Funny. I thought the same thing all this week while you
were here havin’ the time of your life screwin’ with my head.”

            “I wasn’t screwing with you.”

Dean gazed at her, brow raised and jaw set as she stared right back at him with
a teasing smirk on her lips.

While the brothers had left her bedridden to go off on a hunt, Alaine had been
in her bedroom, skulking as she buried herself under layers and layers of
clothes and blankets in an attempt to sweat out her incessant fever.
She grudgingly thought for hours of a way to get back at Dean for leaving her
behind when finally, she came up with a perfect idea to pass the time while she
recovered from the flu. She decided to make it a game of messing with him by
sending him pictures of herself at different times of the day.
The pattern at which they’d be sent out was random to say the least. He never
expected when they'd arrive, and that’s what made the game for her all the more
fun.
The first picture she had sent him had been three hours after he had gone. At
the time, he had been behind the wheel of the Impala, chatting with his brother
who sat beside him in the passenger seat when his phone vibrated from inside
his jacket pocket. Dean–as always–moved to retrieve it. He looked at the
notification on the screen and saw that it was a message from Alaine. He
figured it had to be her sending him an angry text, but it wasn’t until he
navigated into his messages that he realized his assumption was dead wrong.
As he opened up the text, Sam had inquired on who it could be, and as Dean went
to respond, a picture came across his screen. It took him all but half a second
to notice what the image was, and when his eyes fixed onto the sight of
Alaine’s ample backside dressed into a black lacey thong, his phone slipped out
of his hand and fell into his lap. Sam had stared at him quizzically as he
leaned in to get a look at what was displayed on his brother’s phone, but Dean
nervously went to reach for it only for it to jump out of his lap and hit the
car floor with a loud thud.
For the entire week, Dean was reduced to a flustered mess. Every time his phone
would buzz in his pocket, his palms would begin to sweat. Her timing was
unpredictable yet she always managed to catch him at the right moments–in
public, talking to a police officer while posing as an FBI agent, eating
takeout with Sam, riding in the car; it had become hard for him to even
concentrate on anything that wasn’t her.
One of the last pictures she sent him had been the most risqué of them all. He
had been in the middle of chasing down the skinwalker through an alley when his
phone vibrated in his pocket. His first thought jumped to Sam, so without
hesitation, he fished out his cell and opened up his messages. What he thought
would be a quick where-are-you text from his brother turned out to be another
picture of Alaine, this one a lot different from the rest.
The others had been mere teasers – flashes of her bountiful goodies to get him
distracted. But this particular one took the whole cake. Dean had stopped mid-
sprint in the center of the alley, a gaping expression on his flustered face as
he stared down into his phone. Oh fuck, he had murmured shakily to himself as
the image of Alaine’s entire naked physique reflecting of off the full-length
mirror in their bedroom burned right into his pupils. If it hadn’t been for Sam
coming to the rescue three seconds later, Dean would’ve gotten ambushed by the
skinwalker. As soon as they arrived back at the motel, Dean hurriedly sent Sam
out to buy food so that he could have the room to himself.
Once his brother was safely gone, he got himself comfortable and took out his
phone. He thought about video calling Alaine, but decided that a simple
recording would suffice. He stripped down to his black tee and boxer briefs
before sitting up against the headboard of his bed and opening up the camera
app on his phone. It wasn’t until after he sent her the twelve minute long
video of him touching himself that he rushed to the bathroom to clean up the
mess he made, and with a triumphant smile on his face, he awaited a response.
He had been expecting to receive either a text, another picture or a video in
reply, but the sound of his phone ringing half an hour later had caught him by
surprise. He anxiously reached for his cell on top of the bedside table and saw
that it was in fact her, and quickly answered.

            “Hello?”

            “Dean,” she breathlessly spoke into the phone.

            “Yeah? What’s up, babe?”

            “What’s up? Are you serious? You’re...   you’re–I don’t even know
what you are. Fuck. I wasn’t expecting for you to go all out like that.”

            “Really? You thought I’d let you have all the fun?” he chuckled.
“That’s not my style. I let this little game of yours go on this long without
me doin’ a damn thing  ‘cause I wanted to see how far you’d actually take it. I
almost got my ass kicked earlier ‘cause of your horrible timing, but I think
the beating would’ve been worth it.”

            “You weren’t supposed to jump into the game! It was supposed to be
me driving YOU out of your mind, not the other way around. Dammit, Dean.
Shit... Those fucking sounds and faces–God, you so don't play fair!”

            “What’s wrong, sweetheart? Cat got your tongue, or should I say
cock instead?” he taunted, hoarsely.           

           “Dean...”

           “Did you honestly forget that I know how to get under your skin? Did
you forget who you’re messin’ with? Come on, baby. You should know better than
that. Just hope that when I get home, I’ll be too tired to punish you for
givin’ me blue balls all week 'cause believe me, if it ain’t then, it sure as
hell’s comin’ later”

From the edge of the bed, Dean stared at her incredulously. “Really? Okay, so
what would you call it, then?”

            “Hmm...” she pondered for a moment, the tip of her tongue
absentmindedly tracing across her bottom lip in a way that set Dean’s libido
ablaze. “I guess I’d call it giving you a taste of what you were missing.”

            “You know, you deserve a little punishing for puttin’ me through
all that hell, but since I ain’t feelin’ up to right now, you get a momentary
free pass.”

Alaine pouted in disappointment. “But what if I wanted you to punish me?”

The muscle in Dean’s jaw twitched as he watched her slowly begin to crawl her
way on over to him across the bed. He sat there motionless, and remained
immobile as she climbed into his lap and settled herself down.

            “You’re playin’ with fire,” he growled in warning as he angled his
head to look up into her face.

Alaine gazed down into his blazing stare and felt her skin crawl with
excitement as she raked a fingernail across the scruff of his defined jaw.

            “Am I really?” she taunted in return.

Dean settled his hands onto her wide hips, slipping his fingers underneath the
hem of her gray silk camisole to trail across the dip of her waist.

            “Do you have any friggin’ idea how bad I've had it this past week?”

            “No,” she smiled. “But I'd sure love to know.”

            “Well, I'll tell you... You had me goin’ out of my damn mind,” he
murmured, his voice dropping to a deep, intoxicating tone. “All those little
naughty pictures you sent—it took everything I had for me not to haul ass outta
New Mexico and come back home.”

Alaine moaned softly in content as his hands glided up her sides to rest onto
her ribcage with his thumbs tracing underneath the curves of her small breasts.

           “I hated every single minute of it, but kept lookin’ forward to when
I’d get back ‘cause I knew you'd be right here, waiting for my cock.”

            “Dean...” she sighed as her eyes fluttered close.

Biting his lip, he watched as an angelic expression of sheer enjoyment swept
across her face.

            “Shit, babe.  A week’s just too damn long for me to go without
bein’ balls deep inside of you.”

She let out an involuntary gasp as the pad of his thumbs circled around her
hardened peaks, sending a shockwave of electricity surging down south.

            “Tell me something,” he murmured, the base in his voice resonating
in her ears like a hypnotizing melody. “Have you been keepin’ that sweet,
little cunt all nice and wet for me?”

            “Yes,” she moaned as the growing erection trapped underneath the
confines of his jeans pressed up against her panty-clad folds.

             “Yes,  what?”

He flattened his hands onto her breasts, gripping her tight into his palms as
her back reflexively arched into him.

            “Yes, what?” he reiterated, huskily. “Let me hear you say it.”

            “Yes, papi,” she half stammered in response as a fervent growl of
arousal escaped Dean.

            “That's my good girl; keep talkin’ to me in Spanish.”

With a soft whimper, she did as she was told.

            “Por favor. . . necesito sentirte dentro de mí.”

Dean muttered a curse, his jaw clenching as his brain registered the meaning
behind the words she had just spoken.

For months, she had been working on teaching him the language, and although he
struggled horribly with trying to form comprehensive sentences, he was
beginning to have almost no trouble understanding it, which proved to be
convenient for him when it came to dirty talk; the more he understood, the more
aroused he'd become.

With a small smirk now playing on his lips, he released his grip of her breasts
to slip her camisole up over her head. He tossed the thin article of clothing
onto the floor, and stared with wonder at the beauty of a woman writhing in his
lap.

            “Dean,” she breathed out, her eyes meeting his smoldering gaze as
his hands moved to peel off his own t-shirt.

He chuckled. “Relax, baby. I’m right here.”

As he gripped the hem of his shirt into his hands and pulled it up the length
of his torso, at that moment, Alaine’s fingers curled around his belt buckle
and deftly undid it along with the button and zipper of his jeans.

            “Slow your roll sweetheart,” he murmured as he threw his black tee
over his shoulder and gripped her waist into his hands. “It ain’t goin’
anywhere.”

With gentle movements, Dean lifted her off of him and settled her down back
onto the bed as he rose to his feet. She whined in protest, watching the
muscles of his chest and biceps flex as he shoved his jeans down to his ankles
and tugged them off along with his socks. Now standing before her in nothing
but his boxer-briefs, he watched as her gaping eyes traveled down the length of
his softly toned abdomen and settled onto the sight of his prominent erection
straining through the silk-like fabric.

            “Dean please,” she softly pleaded him as she bit her lip in a
struggling attempt to hold back the sound of an anxious whimper.

He gazed down at her with a teasing smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth as
he cupped her cheek into his palm and circled his thumb around her lips.

            “You've been a real naughty girl, you know that?”

She swallowed hard and nodded in response.

            “You think you should be punished you for what you did?”

            “Yes,” she breathed, her voice strained with fervent hunger as the
pad of his thumb grazed across her teeth.

Dean smiled. “I agree with you, but here's the thing ... I know that's what
you've been waitin’ for. Now, how much fun do you think I'll have when you're
beggin’ me to kiss you or touch you and I just stand back like this to watch
you turn into a horny, desperate little mess for me.”

Alaine’s eyes widened as he pulled away from her and gazed at her with a shit-
eating grin on his face.

            “As bad as I want to tear you apart, not givin’ you what you want
is the best way to punish you. I was able to hold out for an entire week, let's
see how long you'll last without having me.”

A whimper of protest came from her as her hands fisted the sheets at her sides.
She stared up at him, uncontrollable want pulsing through her, her head
spinning with the salacious thoughts that raced through her mind. Heat began to
pool deep in her stomach, and as the seconds ticked away, and every nerve
inside of her body thrummed wildly with agonizing desire, Alaine could no
longer bare the straining need for him that thundered within her chest.

Consequently, she lost the challenge.

It all happened too fast for Dean to stop her. She had gone from sitting on the
bed one second, to rushing at him the next, her Hunter-strength knocking the
wind right out of his lungs as she shoved him into the brick wall behind him
and pressed every inch of herself against his lean body. Before he could get
the chance to react, her arms swept around his neck and ensnared his lips in a
forceful yet impassioned kiss.

Dean gasped into her mouth as her tongue invaded his and stole the breath of
air he had tried to intake. She hiked her leg onto his hip and brought their
most intimate parts closer together to rub against each other as she ground
herself against him. Reflexively, Dean’s hands clamped onto her waist as the
sound of a low grunt rumbled through his chest.

            “Stop,” he breathed out.

Alaine disregarded him and moaned into his mouth, the sultry sound forcing a
violent shudder to rip through his body as she rocked harder into him.

             “Alaine,” he warned, his tone dropping to a dangerous growl as his
fingers dug into her skin in an attempt to still her movements. “You need to
stop.”

Dean was struggling to hold himself back. It was always a battle of will
whenever they would have sex; he’d fight to not lose control, and give into his
deep desires. For months, he had been able to subdue himself into submission,
but during recent times, it had become all the more difficult for him to stay
in control when his hidden-self screamed to be set free. The way his blood
pumped through his body, the way his nerves trembled with ravenous carnal
desire – he could feel it coursing through his veins, and to his impending
defeat, his fight against it would soon be lost.

With a reverberant groan, Dean pushed off of the wall as his hands swooped down
to grasp onto the back of her thighs. With ease, he lifted her relatively-
smaller frame up into the air, and instinctively, her ankles locked themselves
around his back. Tongues still intertwined, he moaned against her moving lips
as he climbed back into their bed and shoved her body into the center of the
mattress, his large build pinning her underneath his weight.
He pulled her bottom lip in between his teeth and bit the soft flesh as he
roughly ground his hips into her, his throbbing erection applying an unbearable
amount of pressure to the small bundle of nerves in between her legs. She
pulled her face away and moaned, her hands unraveling from around his neck to
grasp onto his biceps as he gripped her ass hard into his palms.
Dean rocked into her again, and he could hear his own blood roaring in his ears
as the inner-battle for dominion ensued. He tried with all of his might to
maintain a tight rein on himself, but the feel of her bare breasts pressing
against his chest had forced a growl to escape him along with the release of a
strangled breath as her hands rested over the taut muscles of his back.

The sound of an almost pained grunt slipped past his lips as he flattened his
palms onto the bed and lifted himself up until he was hovering over her. At the
sudden absence of his skin against hers, Alaine’s eyes fluttered open. The
shift in the atmosphere hadn’t gone unnoticed by her; all around them, the air
had grown dense, and as her gaze fell upon the sight of his intimidating
countenance, awareness immediately came over her.

 It was happening again...

            “Dean?” she quietly spoke as she peered into his feral stare. The
predatory look in his darkened eyes sent a shudder down her spine. She had
witnessed him in this state several times before, but there was something
different about him. In every other occurrence, he had been able to quickly
suppress himself, but for whatever reason, it seemed as if he was having great
difficulty doing so now, and that made Alaine feel somewhat afraid.
Although she knew with certainty that Dean would never do anything to hurt her
when he was himself, she wasn’t sure of what he’d truly be capable of once he
was no longer in full control. The thought of that was arousing just as it was
frightening, and she couldn’t help but feel helpless and vulnerable as his wild
gaze burned right through to her soul.

            “Dean?” she timidly whispered once more, her hands swooping
underneath his outstretched arms to settle onto his bare chest.

The moment that her palms flattened themselves against his flushed skin, all
remnants of self-restraint left him in a rush as he finally succumbed to his
raging desires.

In the blink of an eye, Dean’s hand had wrapped itself around her wrists, and
forcefully pinned her arms above her head as he fought back the primal growl
trying to claw its way out of his throat.

Alaine yelped in surprise at the sudden action as his hips ground hard against
her, the motion forcing her body to jolt upwards. Latching his mouth onto her
breast, he began his assault on her chest, kissing, licking, and biting every
inch of bare skin he could get to as her body writhed wildly underneath him.
As one hand held both of her wrists, the other had clutched her panties tightly
into its grasp before giving the material one sharp pull, effortlessly ripping
it apart. The sound of the lacey fabric tearing to shreds elicited a startled
gasp from Alaine as he yanked away what was left of her underwear and tossed it
aside.
Without giving her a chance to gather her breath, Dean slipped two fingers
through her wet folds, momentarily brushing over her sensitive pearl before
plunging them deep inside of her. He buried them up to his second knuckles and
Alaine cried out in response, her hips bucking into his hand.

Dean growled against her breast as he swirled his tongue around the erect peak.
He withdrew his fingers only to hurriedly shove them back in a second later and
repeated this motion several times until he felt her walls begin to quiver
around him. It was only when he felt her come close to reaching her peak that
he stopped completely and pulled away from her.

Gasping for air, Alaine’s eyes flickered up to his face, and as her gaze met
his, her body stiffened. This is him, she thought to herself. This is what he’s
been fighting so hard to restrain…

The sight of his newly awakened self left her breathless as she looked upon him
with wide eyes. His countenance had hardened, his features reflecting utter
dominance and power as his burning gaze bore right into hers.

             “Baby?” she spoke in a voice that didn’t quite sound like her own.
She had hoped for a response, but instead, all he did was cast her a fierce
glare. She had seen a similar expression on his face whenever he was faced with
an enemy, but there was such an erotic feel to the way his green eyes roamed
over every inch of her naked skin that left her trembling right where she laid
before him.

She moved her arms from above her head to shakily rest them at her sides as she
watched him devour her with his ravenous gaze. Silence befell them, and all
that could be heard was the raging beating of his heart thundering along in
sync with his labored breaths for air. She waited a few moments before calling
out to him once more, but like before, there was no response.
He didn’t utter a word or say something loving in return; all Alaine got as
acknowledgement was the sound of what appeared to her as a snarl as his hands
flew out and latched onto her hips. She gasped, and with one swift movement,
Dean flipped her around, her face smacking the mattress as he yanked her hips
up towards him and positioned her so that her knees rested flat on the bed.

At the sight of her wide ass bent over in front of him with her glistening,
pink folds on full display, a compelling urge to lose himself in the taste of
her essence swept through him. With a voracious moan, he buried his face
between her legs, eliciting a surprised gasp from her as his tongue circled all
around before settling onto the spot that ached to be caressed the most.
Alaine’s breath hitched in her throat as she ground her hips against his face,
seeking to feel more of his glorious mouth as he licked at her pearl. What
started off as slow flicks of the tongue quickly turned into him desperately
sucking and nibbling as her arousal flowed out of her in streams into his
hungry mouth.
He nuzzled his face deeper, and Alaine responded with a sharp cry as her legs
began to tremble from his mind-numbing ministrations. As before, Dean guided
her towards her breaking-point, and instead of tipping her over the edge, he
denied her the satisfying release and pulled back.

            “No,” she objected, her body humming with need and frustration as
the pressure of her awaiting climax pulsated through her overworked bundle of
nerves. “Don’t stop, please.”

Reaching forward, Dean slipped his fingers into her hair, tugging gently as his
free hand moved to fondle the firm flesh of her ass. He gave it a few small
squeezes before pulling away, and at the absence of his touch, Alaine attempted
to protest once more, but what escaped her instead was the sound of a piercing
cry that quickly followed the hard slap delivered to her bare backside by his
calloused hand.

            “Dean!” she whimpered breathlessly, a burning sensation sweeping
across her skin as tears pricked the corners of her eyes. Writhing in pain, she
turned her face to glance up at him, but the hand at her nape instantly
tightened around the back of her neck, forcing her head back down into the bed.

            “Don’t move,” he warned, his gruff voice full of terrifying power
as his free hand came down upon the other cheek.

The pain of the second smack had been much worse than the first. It forced out
a loud, choking gasp from deep inside of her chest as she buried her face into
the sheets and screamed at the top of her lungs. With a broken mewl, she tried
to squirm away, but with a handful of her hair in his grasp, Dean forcefully
yanked her head back.

            “I said don’t move,” he reiterated. “You're gonna keep this nice
ass of yours bent over for me just like this, understood?”

            “Y—yes,” she murmured softly, her body trembling from head to toe.
It wasn’t until he was reassured that she would in fact stay still that he
released her to strip out of his underwear. With his throbbing erection now
freed from its confines, he positioned himself behind her, the head of his cock
brushing over her thigh, leaving behind a slick trail of arousal across her
skin.

            “You’ve been waitin’ for this, haven’t you? That’s why you played
that little game of yours; you thought you could handle what I’d dish out. You
fucked with me all week just so you could get what you wanted, but it ain’t
gonna go down the way you thought it would. What I say goes, you hear me?
Now, stay put.”

Dean stressed the last two words and Alaine felt her insides twist into a tight
knot as heat surged throughout her entire body, settling into the spot right in
between her legs that painfully ached for his attention. She felt his erection
rim her slit as he clamped his hands onto her hips. He didn’t give her the
chance to brace herself, so when he hastily slammed his hips forward, she cried
out at the abrupt penetration.

             “That's right, baby. Let me hear you,” he growled, pausing for a
beat to savor the feeling of her walls clenching around him.

After a few seconds had passed, he leisurely withdrew his hips and stopped just
as the crown of his erection pressed against her opening. With tormenting ease,
he slipped back into her, stopping just as her sex clamped around the tip of
his shaft before slowly pushing in the rest of his pulsing girth.
He repeated this tortuous motion several more times, sounds of erotic enjoyment
escaping him as he reveled in the moment at hand. Small whimpers began to
escape Alaine as she squirmed in his grasp, and just when she thought he’d end
up teasing her to death, his hold on her waist suddenly tightened. He gripped
her tight, hips drawing back and violently lurching forward, setting a ruthless
pace to his vehement strokes.

The room had been quickly filled with the sounds of her loud, fervent moans
along with the immeasurable amount of praises and dirty expressions Dean
expelled in between her screams as he relentlessly pounded into her. He never
ceased his tempo, but only increased the intensity of his thrusts by shoving
her body into the bed and trapping her beneath him. He loomed over her, one
hand flattening over the arch over her back while the other clamped onto her
shoulder, holding her utterly immobile as the headboard slammed into the wall.

His hips repetitively snapped forward, the sound of wood cracking against
concrete and skin slapping against skin mingling in the air. He drilled into
her, and she cried out his name in the form of a loud, broken whimper.

            “Dean!” she half sobbed. “Please, I–I can't—“

            “You can't what?” he clipped, nailing her hips to the mattress with
punishing drives.

Alaine mumbled something incoherent as she shoved her face into the bed in
efforts of silencing another sharp cry.

He plunged harder into her. “Talk.”

An ear-splitting scream tore through her lungs as she clutched onto the pillow
with white-knuckled force.

He could feel the buildup of his imminent orgasm pooling deep within his core,
and by the way his senses progressively started to numb, he was sure he wasn’t
going to last much longer, so with a final thought, he decided to bring her
along with him.

He abruptly ceased his movements, and without warning, he effortlessly flipped
her onto her back all the while staying buried inside of her as he hooked his
hands onto her waist. He leaned back, the curve of his shaft aiding him in
finding her sweet spot with ease as he angled his hips upwards.

Instantaneously, she gasped, her glistening gaze flickering up to his face.
Groaning softly, Dean ground against her, and Alaine lost herself in the
ambiance of the moment as they simultaneously began the steadfast climb towards
ecstasy.

Feeling her fluttering walls tighten around his cock, Dean expelled a guttural
grunt, his head tilting back. “Oh fuck.”

Her small hands flew out to grasp onto his biceps as he ruthlessly pounded on,
every stroke of his rigid member inching her closer towards the threshold of
orgasmic bliss. As he battered into her, an unfamiliar sensation began to creep
down his back to settle at the base of his spine.

            “Dean,” she mewled, her breath quickening as every nerve within her
body thrummed wildly.

He dropped his gaze to her flushed face, her eyes going wide at the low-grade
intensity of his stare as they locked eyes.

By the way that her body trembled in his grasp, he knew that she was balancing
on a razor-thin edge, threatening to topple over. He watched her beautiful
features contort all the while her gaze remained trained on him, the sheer look
in her amber irises sending a rush of heat pulsing through his throbbing
erection.

He couldn’t slow down, not when she was on the verge of coming undone.

With one last command, he hurtled her into the throes of a cataclysmic orgasm.

            “Come for me, sweetheart. Come now.”

She cried out with a loud gasp, everything squeezing and tightening inside of
her as she exploded around him. The pressure of her sweet release burst through
her as her back bowed and her body bucked. Her hands clawed at his chest and
she sobbed his name, a tidal wave of electrifying pleasure crashing over her.

At the sight of her mesmerizing undoing, the coil inside of him snapped, a
loud, feral growl escaping him. He gave two sharp thrusts before finding
himself calling out her name as he came hard. Hips stuttering, he emptied
himself inside of her, every drop of his essence pouring into her cavern until
filling her to the brim. With a breathless gasp, Dean toppled forward, his
large frame collapsing onto her as the last remnants of energy left him in a
rush.

In an instant, Alaine’s arms had shakily swept around him. She held him against
her, her tiny hands splaying across his massive back as his entire body
trembled from the aftershocks of his mind-blowing release. She clutched him as
tight as she could as he rode out the remainder of his orgasm, peppering kisses
across his shoulder as his raging breath fanned across her skin.

A feeling of sheer happiness swarmed inside of Dean on a euphoric level,
something he hadn't experienced before, something that was entirely new to him.
Out of the countless number of women he had slept with over the years, not a
single one had ever come close to giving him an orgasm as powerful and as
intense as the one Alaine had just delivered him.
Without question, she was ultimately the best he'd ever had, and the fact that
she was still fairly inexperienced didn't prevent her from rocking his entire
world every single time they came together. To Dean, it was crazy how one woman
could turn his life completely inside out, and make him feel things he never
thought he’d be able to feel. Before her, he would've never once imagined it to
be possible to reach such unimaginable highs of cosmic exhilaration. The idea
seemed so farfetched, yet here he was, struggling to regain his composure after
having his body pushed way beyond its limits.

Dean had never brought out his hidden self; he had always kept it locked away
for the very reason that letting himself go with a mere conquest-of-the-night
that he’d probably never get to see again just didn’t sit right with him. But
that was until Alaine came along, giving him every motive he needed to be
himself. She was a woman whose body had never been seen, touched or kissed by
another man; a woman whom he could confidently say that after nineteen long
years of being apart, still belonged entirely to him, and those were some out
of the many reasons as to why he felt so passionately about her.

She was his.

And without a questionable doubt, he too was hers.

After several long minutes of lying in comfortable silence with Alaine pinned
underneath him, tracing small, soothing circles across his shoulder blades,
Dean slowly pulled out of her, the small spark of friction being enough of a
stimulus to reignite the insatiable yearning that resided within him; the
yearning to forever be enveloped in her exhilarating aura.

With a small shudder, he flattened his palms onto the mattress on either side
of her shoulders and lifted his upper body up off of her. He hovered over her,
his hooded gaze settling onto her beautifully-disheveled appearance. His heart
swelled inside of his chest as her golden irises roamed over his face, and
before he could attempt to say something, Alaine’s hand grasped onto the back
of his neck.

Bringing his face down to hers, she captured his lush mouth in a fervent kiss.
And just like that, without missing a single beat, Dean fell back into the
magnetizing aura of this woman–his perfect woman–and their souls merged
together into one all over again as they gave into their unrestrainable need
for one another.
******
   It was sometime in the early afternoon when Alaine had finally decided to
drag herself out of bed. She thought she had been careful as to not stirring
Dean awake when slipping out of his tight embrace, but as she uncurled his arm
from around her waist and sat upright, a soft groan of protest came from behind
her as his hand swept around her and pulled her back down into the mattress.

            “Where do you think you’re goin’?” he croaked, a hint of
playfulness audible in his drowsy voice.

            “Dean,” she whined, lightheartedly, twisting around in his hold to
face him. “I've been in bed all morning; I'm starting to get kind of restless.”

With a grunt of objection, Dean pulled her flush against him, his face
burrowing into the crook of her neck as he wedged a knee in between her thighs.
“I can take care of that.”

            “Nuh-uh,” she giggled as she flattened her palms over his chest in
an attempt to hold him back. “Don’t even think about it, Winchester. I barely
got any sleep because of your insatiable need to ravage me to no end.”

Dean smiled against her skin. “You sure didn’t sound like you had a problem
with it a few hours ago. If my memory serves me right, you were just beggin’ me
to keep goin’.

            “Oh yeah?”

            “Oh Dean,” he mocked, teasingly echoing the words she had fervently
expelled in the heated moment of their intense love making. “Don’t stop. Just
like that. Harder, baby.”

Alaine pulled back, a gaping expression on her face as he lifted his head to
glance up into her flustered countenance.

            “I do not sound like that!”

He chuckled, the sound coming off more erotic than anything else as he loomed
over her. “Oh, you do, and trust me, it’s the hottest shit I’ve ever friggin’
heard.”

She gazed up at him, marveling at his glorious bedhead, and the sexy five
o’clock shadow that framed his devastatingly plump lips. The sheer sight of him
was more than enough to hurtle her into a sex-crazed frenzy, and it took
everything in her for her not to jump his bones right then and there.

            “Just thinkin’ about all those little sexy sounds you make for me
drives me up a friggin’ wall,” he murmured, his eyes roaming over every inch of
her face and bare breasts before locking back onto her heated gaze.

            “Dean,” she faintheartedly protested. “Now’s not the time for-“

The feeling of his rigid arousal nudging against her sex cut her short as a
shudder traveled down her spine.

For fucks sake, just shut the hell up and screw his brains out already.

With a throaty moan, Alaine threw her arms around his neck, seizing his mouth
in a searing kiss as she locked her ankles behind his back and ground herself
against him.

    It wasn’t till after an hour of being “ravaged to no end” that Alaine
finally sauntered out of their bedroom to get a late start on her daily
routines. She was physically tired, but mustered up the needed energy to get in
a small workout session.
Typically, she'd go out in the mornings for her regular jog, but being that it
was below zero degrees outside, and it was now a quarter past one, she opted
for working out in the underground garage instead. About three months ago, she
had gotten lucky when she managed to persuade Dean into transforming a small
section of the large room into an at-home gym for her to use to her vantage.
With the little money they had, they had gone out and purchased a free-standing
punching bag along with a few weights. Occasionally, Dean would use the weights
whenever he felt in the mood to do a few bicep curls, but Alaine religiously
exercised every morning without fail.

Flu or no flu, she wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to keep herself well
in shape.

After her brief workout, she showered and changed into a pair of jeans and a
burgundy baseball tee before making her way through the Bunker. As she entered
the kitchen, Sam's head peaked up from the book he was reading to glance over
at her bubbly countenance, which never failed to put him in a good mood.

            “Hey there,” he greeted with a friendly grin.

Returning his smile, Alaine padded her way over towards the younger Winchester
and ruffled his hair. “Hi, Sammy.”

            “Seriously,” he protested, swatting her hand from his head. “Do you
always have to do that?”

Alaine cracked another smile. “Do you really expect me not to? I mean, what are
sisters for if they can't annoy the crap out of you?”
Sam turned in his seat, casting her one of his famous facial expressions.

            “Sisters are definitely not meant to pose as a huge pain in the
ass, which is exactly what you are to me.

            “And little brothers aren't supposed to be whiney and annoying,”
she teased, reaching out to playfully pinch his cheek before moving to approach
the fridge.

Chuckling, Sam rose from his seat and walked over to the coffee maker to pour
himself another cup while Alaine gathered the needed ingredients to begin to
prepare lunch.

In the amount of time that’s passed, the pair had grown close to the point
where they shared an inseparable, almost sibling-like bond. In secret, Sam had
always wondered what it would be like to have a sister, and now with Alaine
living under the same roof, he was more than content. In his opinion, he and
his brother needed the touch of a woman around the Bunker to make it livelier.
Before, he had seen the place as just a temporary living situation but now, it
was his home, and Dean and Alaine were all the family he needed to feel
complete.

            “So,” Sam spoke up moments later as he moved over to where Alaine
stood by the stove. “Dean's birthday's tomorrow. Did you come up with any
ideas?”

            “I actually did,” she grinned up at him, happily. “It's not going
to be much; I just hope he loves it.”

Sam’s smile matched her own as he raised the rim of his mug up to his mouth.
“Well? Spill it. I'm dying to know.”

            “Sorry. Can't risk you slipping up and telling him. I need this to
be a surprise.”

            “Come on, Alaine. You have to let me in on this!”

Alaine saw the curiosity and eagerness in his eyes and couldn’t help but sigh
in compliance. “Fine. I'll tell you, but only because I might need your help
with something.”

In a hushed voice, Alaine quietly related the details of her big surprise,
being mindful as to not speaking so loud in case Dean walked in on their
conversation. Once she had finished, the previous smile on Sam’s face had
widened further as he softly laughed at her joyful countenance.

            “I swear, how my brother ended up with you doesn’t cease to amaze
me. You’re all around amazing.”

An unsure smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she shyly tucked a loose
strand of hair behind her ear.

            “You think so, Sam?”

            “Absolutely! You’re the best thing that’s happened to him. I know
my brother pretty well. I speak with about one hundred percent certainty when I
tell you that he’s gonna love your surprise.”

            “I really do hope you’re right,” she murmured.

Just as Sam went to say something else, the sound of his brother’s voice coming
from behind him stopped him in his tracks as the elder Winchester strolled his
way into the kitchen with a grin on his face as he did every single morning.

            “There's a lot of talking goin’ on in here and not enough cooking.”

Sam stepped to the side and turned to face his brother with a welcoming grin.
“Well, aren’t you a demanding one.”

            “Hey,” he sheepishly shrugged as he approached the pair. “A man’s
gotta eat. Wait–is that coffee?”

Sam glanced down at the mug in his hand that his brother had just pointed out.
“Uh, yeah. I just poured myself some—”

Before he could get out the rest of his sentence, Dean snatched the mug right
from his hand, claiming it as his own.

            “Dude!” Sam exasperated. “Get your own.”

            “Just did. Thanks Sammy,” Dean retorted with a smirk, pressing his
mouth to the rim of it and taking a long sip of its caffeinated contents. With
a satisfied sigh, he then turned his attention to Alaine, his hand pressing
against the small of her back as he lowered his face to meet her lips in a
sweet, chaste kiss.

            “Hi, princess.”

            “Hey,” she beamed, gazing upon him lovingly as he drew back to peer
down into her glimmering eyes.

            “What’s for breakfast, or should I say what’s for lunch since it’s
a quarter to three.”

Alaine smiled, affectionately patting his cheek before turning back around to
face the stainless steel top counter behind her.

            “How do you feel about grilled chicken wraps and potato wedges?”

Dean’s eyes immediately lit up. “Oh! Please tell me you’re makin’ some of that
homemade ranch of yours too.”

            “You sound like a kid at Christmas,” Sam chuckled, gazing at his
brother’s childlike grin in amusement.

            “Every day feels like Christmas when Alaine’s behind the stove.
We’d still be livin’ off of crappy takeout if it weren’t for her awesome
cooking.”

Sam expelled a throaty chuckle. “Yeah, you’re right. She saved us.”

            “In more ways than one,” Dean added on, speaking more for himself.
His worlds held a great volume of meaning, and Alaine picked up on it as she
glanced back at him with loving adoration reflecting in her amber eyes.

            “Thanks for taking care of us,” Sam earnestly spoke, placing a
large hand over her shoulder and squeezing down gently. “Seriously. God knows
where we’d be if you hadn’t come along. You came into this old, dusty bunker
and turned it into a home. On behalf of my brother and me, I’d like to tell you
that we’re incredibly grateful for all that you’ve done, and for looking after
us. I know living with two grown men can be a real pain sometimes, especially
when having to constantly pick up after our messes, but you do it every day
without complaining because it makes you happy.”

Alaine gazed at Sam with wide eyes, a knot forming in her throat as the younger
Winchester smiled down at her.

            “Overall, I just want to thank you for being you, and for loving us
the way you do.”

            “Sam,” she choked out, tears stinging the back of her eyes.

He had no idea just how much living with them truly meant to her. After losing
her brother and father, Alaine had been left broken, alone, and without a
family. For years, she secretly yearned to get back that which she had lost,
and as if a miracle had been performed in her life, the Winchesters appeared,
giving her what she had been missing for far too long – a family to love.

There wasn’t a need of a blood-relation for her to feel like she belonged for
their profound bond was utterly unbreakable. She had become a part of their
broken family, and with her sheer radiant presence, she had made it whole
again.

With a hearty laugh, Sam curled his arm around her shoulders and pulled her
into a warm hug.

            “Hey, no need to cry.”

Alaine let out a chuckle of her own as she wrapped her arms around his torso
and hugged him in return. “You can’t say something like that and expect me
to not to burst into tears; I’m an emotional girl.”

From beside them, Dean’s voice spoke aloud. “Yeah. We know, babe.” He stepped
forward, moving to cup the back of her head into his hand.

            “You were just crying the other week while watching a documentary
on penguins,” Sam chortled as he glanced down at her in his hold. “Which still
doesn’t make any sense to me.”

            “I was crying because they’re cute!”

Both Sam and Dean broke out into laughter at her response.

            “Don’t laugh at me,” she playfully snapped at the both of them.

Smiling from ear to ear, Dean leaned forward and lowered his face to press a
kiss to the crown of her head as she glanced up to look at both of them.

            “We’re laughin’ ‘cause you’re cute,” the eldest Winchester mocked.

Pulling out of Sam’s brotherly embrace and standing back, Alaine cast the both
of them a glare. “You guys are sogonna get it.”

            “There goes my little Spanish firecracker.”

            “Shut it, Dean!”

            “Dude,” Sam warned, turning to him. “Stop before she gets angry and
blows a fuse.”

Alaine glanced at the taller Hunter, brows raised and arms folded over her
chest. “So, you’re going to encourage him?”

             “What? I didn’t do anything!” he blurted out, raising his hands up
in defense.

At the sight of his brother’s cowering expression, Dean doubled over in gut-
bursting laughter, his hand clutching at his stomach as tears sprung to his
eyes.

Both Sam and Alaine turned their attention to him, a beaming grin spreading
across her face at his heartwarming display of sheer happiness.

She lived for the precious moments like these. To see them happy and somewhat
carefree–it brought her great joy to know she was the reason for their loving
smiles and the husky laughter that echoed throughout their home.

Their home–the thought of that always evoked a sense of completion within her.
With Sam and Dean as a part of her life, she didn’t need anything else for
their existence provided all of the comfort and security in the world for her
to feel safe and loved.
******
    The following morning, Alaine had slipped out of bed at daybreak, leaving
Dean to sleep to his heart’s content while she went about starting the
preparations for the day’s events that were to unfold. She quietly snuck into
Sam’s bedroom and crept on over towards his bed to wake him.

            “Sam,” she whispered, leveling her face to his ear as she shook him
gently. “Sam, wake up.”

The sleeping giant groaned, his massive limbs outstretching from underneath the
covers as he softly stirred.

            “Sam,” she spoke again with more urgency. “Get up.”

At the third call of his name, he raised his head up from his pillow, his
shaggy hair falling over his face as he tiredly propped himself up onto his
elbows.

            “I’m up, I’m up.”

            “Good. Come on, we have stuff to do.”

            “Right...” he grumbled as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “It’s
Dean’s birthday.” A second later, the realization of that struck him and he
jolted upright, his long legs swinging over the edge of the bed as he sat up.
“It’s Dean’s birthday! Crap–okay, I’m awake. What do you need me to do?”

Alaine smiled down at him. “Well, for starters, I need you to take a shower and
get dressed. After you’re done, meet me in the library and I’ll let you know
what our next course of action will be.”

            “Okay,” he nodded. “Got it.”
******
    It was around late midday when Dean finally strolled out of his bedroom.
After sleeping most of the day away, he jumped out of bed and dressed himself
into a pair of jeans, a black crew-neck tee along with a cotton, mustard-
colored overshirt, and his brown logger boots. As he stepped up to the small
sink at the opposite end of the room, he caught a glimpse of his reflection in
the mirror and halted. Gazing into the eyes of the worn out man staring back at
him, he let out a heavy sigh.

Today was his birthday.

Thirty-friggin’-six years old, he thought to himself, almost in disbelief. He
would’ve never imagined that he’d get to live this long, nor that he would’ve
suffered through so much torment. Any other man wouldn’t have survived, but he
wasn’t just any ordinary human being. He was a warrior, crafted to fight, to
kill, and to protect and defend those he held dear.
For as long as he could remember, his life solely had revolved around Hunting.
Day in and day out, he would find himself tired, covered in the blood of his
enemies, and wishing deep down to someday reach that light at the end of the
tunnel.
There was a point in time where he strongly believed that the only way he’d
find it would be at the end of the barrel of a gun, regardless if it was his
own. But after spending so many years subconsciously longing for death, he had
been given an incentive to keep on living; a brand new purpose, which was to
love, fight for, and protect Alaine, no matter the cost. He was no longer
living for himself, or for his baby brother – he was now living for her. This
year marked a new chapter in his life; a chapter that – for the very first time
– he confidently looked forward to. He knew every day would be a winning battle
for as long as she stood by his side, there was no way he could ever fail
again.

He noted the change in the way the man in the mirror gazed back at him. His
eyes no longer held sadness and misery as they did for so many years. For the
first time ever, there was a glimmer of hope in them.

With an earnest smile sweeping across his face, Dean reached for his
toothbrush. Today’s gonna be a great day.

After brushing his teeth, and styling his short tresses into his signature
hairdo, he stepped out of his room, and shut the door behind him before moving
down the long corridor. He roamed the Bunker’s insulated halls until finding
himself standing in the doorway of the kitchen. His eyes scanned the vacant
room, finding it strange to see that neither his brother nor girlfriend were
there waiting for him as they usually did.

Turning to leave, he rounded the corner and kept walking until coming into the
operations room. Just like the kitchen, there was no sign of either one of
them. With a huff, he crossed the room, passing the table in the center and
moving over towards the small steps leading into the library.

            “Sam?” he called out, his voice echoing throughout the vast space.

From within the room, he could hear shuffling, and as he waltzed inside, his
eyes fell upon his brother standing at one of the mahogany tables, a jacket in
hand.

            “Hey,” Dean addressed him, a curious look in his eyes as Sam turned
to him. “Where you goin’?”

            “Um...” Sam murmured, scratching his brain for an immediate lie to
come up with as Dean stared him down. “I’m, uh... I’m heading out to run a few
errands; gotta pick up some things.”

Dean studied his brother intently. “What do you have to get? I’ll go with you.”

Sam pondered for a moment. She said to find a way to get him out of the Bunker
for a few hours... But how am I going to be able to get what she asked for if
he’s standing right next to me? Crap–think fast before he gets suspicious.

            “Yeah, sure,” he smiled, hoping that Dean didn’t think much of his
momentary pause.

            “Alright. Let me go grab my jacket.”

With an internal sigh of relief, Sam waved him off and waited for him to leave
the library before fishing out his cell from his jean pocket to send Alaine a
message.

           –Hey. We have a huge problem…

Almost instantly, his phone buzzed in his hand with an incoming text.

            –Where’s the fire? lol

            –It’s Dean. He saw me in the library and started asking questions.
I don’t think he suspects anything as of yet, but there’s a major setback; I
told him I was heading out on a supply run, and he offered to tag along.

It took a few minutes before another reply popped up in the messaging
thread    

            –Ok. Take him with you, I can handle the rest. I’ll pick up what’s
left on my way back home, just keep him busy for as long as you can.

Keep him busy?

Just as Sam went to type another response, his brother’s voice had suddenly
called out to him.

            “Have you seen Alaine? She’s not in the bunker.”

Sam lifted his head up from the screen of his phone to glance over at Dean who
now bore a stern countenance.

            “No,” he lied once more as he quickly stored his phone away into
the back pocket of his jeans. “I haven’t seen her all day. Did you check the
garage? She could be working out.”

Dean narrowed his eyes in question. “I did. She isn’t there. I’ve called and
text her, but she hasn’t answered back. By the way, who were you just texting?”

            “Uh–no one important really.”

            “Really?” Dean asked, his tone doubtful. “By the look on your face
I’d say you’re hidin’ something.”

Sam shook his head. “No, I’m not—”

            “Don’t tell me,” his brother chuckled out of nowhere, a smile
tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Don’t tell me you’ve been holdin’ out on
me, man.”

            “W—what? What are you talking about?”

Dean laughed again, shaking his head in amusement. “Sammy, you dog. You were
sexting, weren’t you?”

Sam’s eyes went wide, a flustered expression etching onto his face.

            “You were! Oh, this is just awesome.”

            “I wasn’t sexting,” Sam quickly protested.

            “Hey, don’t let me rain on your parade. You go and have your fun.
Just make sure she’s good before you decide to drop a load in her;don’t want
you catchin’ anything that ain’t a cold.”
Sam’s face scrunched up in discomfort and disgust at his crude retort. “Dude!”

            “Alright,” Dean smiled, fishing his keys out of his jacket pocket.
“Let’s get out of here.”

With an annoyed sigh, Sam slipped on his own jacket and followed his brother
out into the operations room, and as Dean was about to ascend the iron steps,
he turned around to face him once more.

            “Is it serious? I mean, are you plannin’ on knockin’ her up ‘cause
I wouldn’t mind you makin’ me an uncle for my birthday, you know? 'Uncle
Dean’–kinda has a nice ring to it, don’t it?”

Sam stared into the smiling face of his older brother and expelled another sigh
of irritation. “Shut up, Dean.”

            “What? Don’t you think havin’ a little mini version of you runnin’
around in diapers is cute? Reminds me of when you were a baby. Dad would change
your diaper, and he’d turn his back for two seconds to do somethin’ and you’d
just jump off Bobby’s couch, rip your diaper off and start runnin’ around
naked. Man, those were some good times.”

            “If you’re done reliving my humiliating childhood moments, I’d like
to go now,” Sam grumbled.

Dean chuckled and reached out a hand to lovingly pat his brother on the
shoulder. “Alright, Sammy. I’ll leave you alone now. Let’s hit the road.”
******
    It had been hours before the brothers returned home to the Bunker. At
first, Dean had been fairly curious as to what Sam’s “errands” consisted of, so
when they walked into a small mini market in town, he trailed closely behind
him. After watching him go about picking out his organic foods and his needed
toiletries, Dean urged Sam to hurry up. Once they climbed back into the Impala,
the eldest brother drove with the idea to grab a few drinks in mind.

This should give Alaine enough time to do what she has to do, Sam had thought
to himself. But as Dean set course for his favorite dive-bar, he suddenly
pulled up at a stop sign on an empty street and put his car in park.

            “What are you doing?” Sam asked, turning in his seat.

Dean took out his cell from his jacket pocket, a small scowl on his face.
“Somethin’ ain’t right. Alaine hasn’t called or text me all day. She never does
that.”

            “Maybe she’s busy running errands too and just hasn’t had the time
to contact you,” Sam offered, hoping to diffuse his brother’s growing
suspicions.

            “Nah,” Dean refuted the idea with a shake of his head. “That ain’t
like her. She always tells me what she’s up to. I’m startin’ to think
somethin’s wrong.”

Sam’s mind instantly began to panic. Crap, this isn’t good. I have to say
something quick before he turns this car around... 

            “I’m sure she’s fine, Dean,” he reassured with a smile. “Listen,
let’s go drink a few beers and have a good time. You can try calling her again
in a little while, and if she doesn’t answer, we can head back home to check up
on her, alright?”

Dean glanced at his brother, a look of uncertainty in his eyes as he clutched
his phone in his hand. With a sigh, he shifted the car back into drive.

            “Alright. We’ll go to the bar, but I ain’t plannin’ on stayin’
long.”

            “Sure, that’s fine,” Sam nodded.

As the brothers made their way to their designated destination, Dean couldn’t
help but begin to feel concerned. He found her lack of messaging and calling to
be extremely unusual, and the fact that today was his birthday and she has
neglected to acknowledge that only caused him more worry. While he and his
brother sat in the bar, downing what would be their third round of beers, he
began to periodically check his phone. He stood by and impatiently waited for
the hour mark to hit. Once he saw that the time neared four o'clock, he stood
up from his barstool.

            “Hey, Sammy. I’m gonna step out and make a call. I’ll be back.”

Turning to face his brother, Sam gave him a nod as he took the last gulp of his
beer. “Alright.”

As Dean turned his back to him and moved to walk away, Sam hurriedly took out
his phone to send Alaine a warning text.

            –Dean’s getting seriously worried because you’ve been ignoring him
all day. You need to answer his call before he hauls ass back to the bunker.

A couple of seconds later, his phone buzzed in his hand.

            –Crap. Ok. Thanks for the heads-up.

With a sigh, Sam put his phone away into the pocket of his jacket and ordered
another beer while he waited for his brother to come back.

Outside of the bar, Dean had been standing by the dumpsters, readying himself
to call her for what was now going to be the tenth time. He pressed his
cellphone to his ear, and anxiously waited for her to pick up. It was on the
fourth ring that he heard her voice flow into the speaker.

           “Hello?”

            “Babe,” he exasperated, mentally expelling a sigh of relief.
“What’s been goin’ on? You’ve been dodgin’ me all day.”

            “Baby I’m so sorry. I had gone out this morning to do some grocery
shopping. I was planning on heading straight home after that, but on the way
back, my truck broke down on me out of nowhere; I had to call a mechanic to tow
it to the nearest shop.”

Dean’s brows furrowed in irritation. “And your first thought isn’t to call me?
Somethin’ like that happens, you let me know, you don’t just go the entire day
without talkin’ to me.”

           “I know, but I was so caught up with what was going on with my truck
that I forgot to get in contact with you. I’m sorry for making you worry.”

            “It’s alright,” he spoke, his hand running over his face as he let
out a heavy sigh. “Next time, just... just call me, okay? I hate thinkin’
somethin’s happened to you while I’m not around.”

            “Okay. I’ll make sure to call you next time.”

            “Good. Now, what’s wrong with your truck?”

            “Nothing too serious. It was just battery failure; I had to get a
brand new one installed. The mechanic ran a diagnostic to see if anything else
was wrong. Luckily, he found her to be in good shape. I just have to keep up
with her regular maintenance checks so I won’t have to suffer through another
breakdown.”

            “Alright. Well, I’m glad you and your truck are both okay.”

            “Yeah, we’re good,” she chuckled. “I’m just wrapping things up here
so I can head back home. I’ll see you in a little while, okay?”

            “Sammy and I went out to grab some drinks, so we won’t be home for
like another hour or so.”

            “Okay, that’s fine. Don’t have too much fun without me.”

Dean smiled. “Trust me, I won’t. I’m gonna head back into the bar now. I’ll
talk to you later, babe.”

            “Alright, bye.”

Ending the call, Dean blew out a sigh as he tucked his phone away into his
pocket and turned towards the door of the establishment.

Sam had been sitting with a beer in his hand when his brother walked back in.
Turning in his seat, he waited for him to approach before addressing him.

            “So, is she alright?”

Dean plopped back down into his barstool and propped his arms up onto the
countertop of the bar. “Yeah, she’s good. Her truck had broken down, that’s why
she’s been M.I.A. She said she’s heading home now.”

            “Okay. So I’m guessing we’re not leaving.”

            “I told her we went out and that we won’t be back ‘til later.”

Sam noticed the slight shift in his brother’s tone and furrowed his brows in
question. “Hey, you alright?”

            “I’m good,” he sighed. “She just didn’t say happy birthday before
we got off the phone. I don’t know, maybe I’m thinkin’ too much of it. She did
have a hectic day, so maybe she’s just tired.”

            “Don’t worry about it,” Sam smiled, placing a hand over Dean’s
shoulder. “I’m sure she’s waiting to see you so she can tell you in person
instead.”

Dean turned to look at his brother. “You think so?”

            “Yeah! Just relax, have another beer, and you’ll see her when you
get home.”

            “Alright,” he nodded. Now feeling more reassured than earlier, his
mood had significantly lightened up. He went on to order several more rounds
for him and his brother to enjoy, and once they were about ready to leave, he
ended the day by hustling a couple of people in a quick game of pool and
ultimately winning back all the money he had spent.

            “Dude. I’m tellin’ you, it’s like we just drank all those beers for
free,” he had laughed as he counted his earnings inside of the car.

From beside him, Sam let out a chuckle of his own as he gazed at his brother in
amusement. “Glad to see you had fun. You ready to go home now?”

Turning to look at him, Dean gave him a wide smile. “Oh, you have no idea.”

With a laugh, Sam watched as his brother guided the Impala out of the parking
lot and pulled up into the main road leading back to the Bunker. For the entire
drive, Dean sang along to his favorite cassette tapes, all the while Sam sang
with him, occasionally out of tune. Open road, fresh air whipping into the
Impala, his baby brother at his side – it was moments like these that Dean
cherished the most. Family meant more to him than anything in the world. Sam
and Alaine–they were the two most important people in his life, and he would
forever live and die for them, regardless of what were to happen to him. When
it came to them, there was no limit to Dean Winchester’s righteousness, for his
sole purpose was to love and protect those he cared for, even if it meant it
would cost him his own life.
******
    When the brother’s pulled up outside of the Bunker, Sam was first to get
out of the car. He waited for Dean to turn off the engine before trekking
through the snow on over towards the entrance of their underground home. As
they entered, they made their way out onto the balcony overlooking the
operations room, and instead of finding the place brightly lit as always, they
had been met with unexpected darkness.

            “What the hell?” Dean spoke in confusion, shuffling around on the
top step of the staircase. “What happened to the friggin’ lights?”

            “I don’t know,” Sam lied, smiling into the pitch black as he heard
his brother scuffle to pull out his phone from his pocket. “Could be a fuse
shortage.”

            “Well this is just great! I can’t see a damn thing.”

            “Why don’t you use your phone’s flashlight?” Sam offered as a
suggestion.

            “Yeah,” Dean retorted in annoyance. “I’m workin’ on it.”

After a few seconds, a small stream of light illuminated their pathway down the
staircase.

            “Crap, it ain’t bright enough. Sammy, take yours out too. I’m not
lookin’ to bust my ass on these steps.”

Sam let out a chuckle at the thought. “That’d be pretty hilarious.”

            “Just shut up and turn your flashlight on,” Dean snapped.

Once there was enough light cast out in front of them for them to watch their
footing, they descended the iron stairs and stopped as they reached the bottom.

            “Alright. I’m gonna go check the fuse box in the electrical room.
You comin’ with?”

            “Yeah,” Sam responded. “I’ll tag along.”

They cautiously roamed the dark halls, twisting and turning past corners until
they came face to face with the door leading to the electrical room. Twisting
the doorknob, Dean slipped inside of the room and made his way over to the fuse
box. He popped it open and let out a huff.

            “What is it?” Sam asked.

A moment later, light flooded the room from overhead.

            “The switch was turned off,” Dean turned to his brother, suspicion
audible in his voice.

Sam gave him an innocent look. “That’s weird. We should check to see if
Alaine’s home.”

            “Yeah, we should.”

Following Dean out into the illuminated halls, he trailed behind him as he
walked over to his bedroom, and stood back when his brother raked his knuckles
over the door.

            “Babe? You in there?” he called.

After hearing no response, Dean cracked open the door to peer inside and found
that the room was completely empty. By now, he was even more suspicious. His
next thought was to check to kitchen, but just like his bedroom, he didn’t find
her there either.

Turning to his brother, he cast him a doubtful glare. “Alright, spill it.”

            “What?” Sam asked, feigning confusion.

            “You know what,” Dean accused, his eyes narrowing. “You’ve been
lyin’ to me all day. Where is she?”

            “I have no idea,” Sam replied as he raised his hands up in defense.

            “Sam, so help me God—“

            “Dude, I don’t know. Honest.”

Dean pursed his lips, glancing away for a moment before glaring at his brother
once more. “I’m gonna kick your ass if you ain’t tellin’ the truth.”

Turning to leave, he strolled out of the kitchen with great speed to his
stride. Sam had quickly followed after him as he made his way back into the
operations room.

            “Dean, wait!”

Just as he caught up with his brother, both of them came to a sudden halt. They
were facing the entranceway of the library, Sam boring a surprised countenance
while Dean gaped into the room, utter shock etched onto his face.

            “What... what is this?” Dean asked, unable to believe what he saw
before him.

Before Sam could get the chance to explain, noise erupted from the opposite end
of the library, catching both of them off guard.

            “Happy birthday!”

From behind one of the bookshelves, out popped the last two people Dean
would’ve ever expected to see there. With cheerful smiles on their faces, they
came out into the open to greet him.

            “Jody? Charlie?” Dean blurted out in disbelief, taking a few steps
forward. “What the hell?”

            “Hope you love the decorations,” Charlie piped, placing her hands
on her hips. “They were a bitch to put up.”

            “Yeah,” Jody added on. “Took us at least three hours to get it
right. I tell ya, Alaine’s a real perfectionist. You got yourself a good girl
there.”

Dean stared at the both of them, his widened eyes struggling to assess whether
or not what he saw was truly real.

All throughout the room, ribbons and streamers hung from almost every surface
of every furniture while silver and gold balloons wrapped around each of the
pillars. On the center table, a few wrapped presents were placed atop its
surface, along with aluminum pans filled with what Dean assumed had to be food.
There was a few cases of beer set to the side, along with a fresh bottle of
Jack Daniel’s, and to his utter amazement, there was a big, beautiful pie
placed right in the middle of the table.

            “She... she did all this?” he asked, utterly stunned by just how
much work she had put into everything.

            “Oh yeah,” Jody smiled. “We pitched in, but this was all her doing.
She had this planned for about a month, which gave us more than enough time to
clear our schedules.”

            “But how? I mean, how’d she get in contact with you two?”

            “She got our numbers off your cell,” Charlie answered. “I was real
surprised when she called me and told me she was your girlfriend. Surprised,
and also upset because you neglected to tell me you were seeing someone. Dude,
you can’t keep that kind of info from your family.”

            “She’s right,” spoke Jody. “It’d be nice to know these kinds of
things. Especially since all we want is nothing but the best for you boys.”

Dean scoffed, the sound being followed by a chuckle as he ran a hand over his
face. “I can’t believe this.”

            “Oh, you better believe it.”
At the sound of a third female voice, everyone quickly turned their attention
to the person who sauntered into the operations room. With a wide smile on her
face, Alaine made her way over to where Dean stood just inside the doorway of
the library, an expression of sheer adoration on his face. At the sight of her,
he had felt his heart swell inside of his chest, constricting his breathing as
she gracefully approached him.

            “I know you sometimes have trouble understanding just how much
you’re truly worth, so I thought that gathering the people who care about you
and bringing them all under one roof might help you see how special you really
are.”

            “Alaine...” Dean had attempted to speak, but found himself at a
complete loss for words as the muscle in his throat tightened.

            “Dean Winchester,” Alaine softly sighed, her smile widening even
further as she walked up the small steps leading into the library and stopped
in front of him. “You have always been the best thing that’s ever happened to
me; from when we met as kids, to the many years we spent apart, and right up to
this very moment we’re in today. I spent so much time wishing I’d get to see
you again; hoping that our paths would someday cross, and to my sheer luck, I
ended up running into you and Sam back at that motel in Tennessee.
"Back then, I had no idea I was going to end up moving in with you
knuckleheads, nor that you and I would’ve ended up together, but . . . this
past year has been the highlight of my life. Being with you–it’s the happiest
I’ve ever been in ages, and I don’t want that to ever go away. You and Sam are
all I have; you’re my only family now, and I know you guys need me just as much
as I need you. So... that’s why I’m going to say that no matter happens, no
matter what troubles we face, I won’t ever turn my back on you two, and I won’t
ever take what you and I have for granted. Because being here with you, it’s
all I’ve ever wanted because...  because—“

Alaine trailed off, her voice cracking as she glanced up at the ceiling to
prevent the tears in her eyes from falling. She took in a shaky deep breath,
and gathered herself before staring back into Dean’s glistening gaze.

            “To put it simply...  I–I love you, Dean.”

As those three little words left her lips and swept into Dean’s ears, a
breathless huff had escaped him as his heart sunk down to his stomach. He stood
there, staring into this woman’s eyes, and for the first time ever, he didn’t
bother trying to stop the tears that slowly trickled down his cheeks. He let
them fall freely for they were not tears of sadness, but instead, tears of
unrestrainable happiness.

With a soft chuckle, Alaine had cupped his face into her hands and brought
herself closer to him.

            “Hey—you’re gonna make me cry harder if you don’t stop, and if we
keep crying then everyone’s gonna start crying, and I don’t think we have
enough tissue to go around for that.”

            “Too late,” Jody choked out from behind them.

Both Dean and Alaine had turned their heads to glance over at her, and saw that
she was wiping away her tears with the heel of her hands.

            “Oh God, if I’d known I’d end up crying today, I wouldn’t have put
on mascara.”

            “You and I both, sister,” Charlie added, dabbing at her eyes with
the sleeve of her flannel shirt.

Dean swallowed away the knot that had formed in his throat and let out a small
laugh as he turned to gaze back down at Alaine. With a loving smile spreading
across his tear-streaked face, he curled his arms around her back.

            “I guess that’s my fault.”

Alaine giggled in response. “They’ll be fine. Just give them a couple of
minutes.”

From beside them, Sam cleared his throat. “I, uh–um... yeah. Why don’t we get
this surprise party going?”

            “Can it wait ‘til I get back from the bathroom?” Jody asked. “I
really need to clean this mess up on my face. I look like a goddamn raccoon.”

Without waiting for a response, Jody ducked past Dean and Alaine and hurriedly
made her way through the operations room and out into the hallway.

            “Well, while we wait for her to get back, I say we get some music
going,” Charlie offered. “Classic rock, anyone?”

Laughing at her, Sam moved into the library to assist her with setting it up.
“Let me help you with that.”

As Dean and Alaine were now left standing alone at the entranceway of the
library, his arms around her back had clutched her a bit tighter as he turned
his attention back to her once more.

            “Thank you,” he murmured in a low, raspy voice.

Smiling, she swiped away a stray tear from his cheek with the pad of her thumb
before moving up onto her tiptoes to press her lips flush to his.

            “Happy birthday, babe. You deserve all the happiness in the world,
and I’m gonna be here to make sure you get it.”

With a shaky sigh, Dean closed his eyes and poured every ounce of his love for
her into a heartfelt kiss; every ounce of love he was too afraid to verbally
express.
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