Cherry Pie

Music Education

[Dean]

We'd been on the road for a few hours. Rayne had weaseled her way into the front seat, and was now sitting cross-legged looking through my tape collection. Sam was grudgingly sitting in the back, staring out the window. Rayne had given him pathetic puppy dog eyes, claiming that she had a headache and that sitting in the backseat would make her feel even more sick and he fell for it. I wasn't complaining; she defended my music choices and Sam couldn't argue against the both of us.

We left Bobby's later that morning after I forced Rayne to eat some breakfast. I didn't think of it the other day, but she hadn't eaten anything since before the accident. She fought me tooth and nail, of course, moaning that she felt too nauseous to eat, but I knew what a vicious cycle that could turn into. In the end, I traded her half a Tylenol for a bowl of cereal, which she reluctantly accepted.

She and I were bickering heatedly before it was even nine and Bobby finally just shook his head at us and shoved us out the door, reminding Sam and I to call him with any important news. Rayne seemed to have taken a liking to the old man and she even gave him a hug before we drove off. Bobby was clearly surprised but the pat on the back that he gave her in return and the small smile that peaked through behind his mustache indicated that he found a soft spot for the spunky redheaded woman as well.

Rayne was in the same yoga pants that she changed into the previous day — the ones that made her shapely legs all too noticeable and distracting — but she thankfully pulled on a baggy hoodie over her tank top, which meant that I could at least safely look at her face without my gaze drifting downwards on its own accord. It was annoying how conscious Rayne made me of my womanizing ways, and even more annoying how I somehow tried to suppress them in her presence. Normally I didn't care to act 'respectably', as Sam would put it, but then again, normally I didn't see the women I'd interacted with ever again after conveniently skipping town in search of another hunt.

By the looks of things, Rayne would be with us for a while and that made me more resolved to have our relationship remain platonic. Things would get a lot more difficult if feelings got involved. From the corner of my eye I saw her begin to put all of the tapes back into the box neatly, a smile on her face. "It's a good collection you have here, Dean."

Sam groaned dramatically in the back seat. "Why? Why is this happening to me? One Dean was more than enough; I don't think I can handle two!"

"Don't hate, appreciate!" she chanted with all the peppiness of a cheerleader.

"I have to agree with her, Sammy," I said. "It's about time you accepted the truth and admitted that rock music is the only music."

"Oh, well I wouldn't agree with that," Rayne said.

I turned to her, shocked. "Excuse me?"

"Ha!" Sam shouted triumphantly.

"Can it back there!" I yelled at him.

"Don't get me wrong," Rayne began, "I love rock n' roll...my dad made sure of that. But there's tons of other great music out there."

"Enlighten me," I said, doubtful.

"Well, I have an entire playlist of classic oldies that I guarantee you will grow to love. And," she paused, "now don't freak out; but there's some good country music out there, as well."

"How dare you, you heathen?" I pretended to gag. "I'm traumatized!"

She laughed. "Don't knock it till you try it! I've turned bigger skeptics than yourself into believers."

"Don't hold your breath, sweetheart."

She shrugged it off and stuck her bare feet up on the dashboard. I considered swatting them off but she wasn't looking too hot. I decided to let it slide...that time.