No Strings Attached

Day 267

            "Lena, what's wrong? Are you okay? What's going on?" This seems to set Elena off and for a moment all Dean can hear is her frantic crying. Panic instantly sets in, Dean's heart pounding in his chest. "Elena? Elena, talk to me. What happened?"

            "Damon... He—He saw my phone. Last night he—Dean, he knows. He knows everything," Elena sobs, her knuckles white as she grips the steering wheel tighter. "I can't—Dean, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. My phone—it was my phone and—"

"Where did you meet this guy, huh?"

"A bar."

"My bar?!"

"No! Of course not."

            "Where are you? I'm coming to get you," Dean insists, scooping his keys back up. "Everything's going to be fine. Where are you?"

            "I'm in the car," she stammers, taking a shuttering breath. "I'm driving—"

            "Elena, pull over. Pull over right now. You shouldn't be driving. Just pull over and I'll come get you," Dean tells her, doing his best to stay calm. His grip on the keys tighten, the cool metal digging painfully into his palm. "Did you pull over?"

            "Yes," Elena whispers, putting the car in park. All energy seems to have drained out of her in an instant, leaving her with nothing but her racing mind.

"You met his family?!"

"It wasn't planned! We had car trouble and needed a place to stay—"

"Oh, well in that case it's totally okay."

"Okay, okay," Dean breathes, closing his eyes and letting out a sigh. "Where are you?"

            "I'm next to the house with... with the fountain. The one with the weird looking angels," Elena tells him, nibbling gently on her fingernail. It was a habit she broke as a kid, but the stress of last night causes her to relapse.

"Has your work schedule even changed or was that just a lie, too?"

"It has, but..."

"Not near as much. Typical."

            "I know the one. Alright, I'm on my way. Don't move, okay? I'm coming," Dean assures her, hanging up the phone. Dean takes a deep breath, trying to keep his hands from shaking. If Damon had hurt her... No, he couldn't think about that. Right now he just needs to get to her and—

            "Dean?" Lisa rounds the corner, her voice stopping him from opening the front door. "Where have you been? I've been calling..."

            "Lis, hey, sorry. I just have to duck out, but I'll be right—"

            "What? You can't leave. The movers will be here any minute. I already have your suitcase packed. You should shower," Lisa tells him, coming over and placing a calming hand on his shoulder. Dean flinches back, his hand still gripping the door handle. "Dean?"

            "Honey, I gotta go," Dean continues, turning the door handle with the intention of stepping back out into the morning air. "A friend got into some trouble. I have to go pick them up. I'm sorry."

            "No," Lisa snaps, causing Dean to freeze again. "No, you can't just leave. You've been gone all morning doing god knows what and I need you here. We're moving Dean. Moving. You don't get to run off whenever you want to!"