Spin

Chapter Twelve

The entire street where Dean lived was clogged with cars. We parked a few houses away and started walking. We could hear the thump of music before we saw the house. Dean met us at the door. He was an all American kind of guy, blue eyed and broad shouldered with an easy smile. 

"Hey, guys. Glad you could make it. Come on in," he said warmly. 

I heard Spin growl menacingly under his breath when Dean's eyes lingered on me for a second too long, and Cody drew me closer to his side.

"You look beautiful," he whispered in my ear.

I smiled and kissed him gently.

"I love you," I said quietly.

"I love you," he repeated, kissing my temple as we entered the house. 

I don't remember who handed me my first drink, or the several that followed. I was aware of sitting on Dean's expensive black leather couch in between Cody and Spin, and I remember us laughing, although I wasn't sure why. I was keeping my promise of staying with them, that I was sure of, as I held Cody's hand and laid my head on Spin's shoulder. It didn't strike me as odd that Dean was staying with us so much. He would leave and mingle, but always came back and sat with us. I guess I had never realized how good of friends he was with my brother.

"How you doing, baby sister?" Spin asked, a broad grin on his face.

"I'm...fine..." I said slowly, careful not to slur my words. Spin began to laugh, and I was about to scold him for teasing me when I noticed Dean standing in front of us, precariously balancing three large Styrofoam cups, which he distributed to each of us. Spin and Cody downed theirs quickly, and I followed suit, immediately gagging.

"What...the hell...was that?" I gasped.

"Jager," said Dean innocently.

"What?" My head was spinning.

"Jagermeister, Lexi. It's Jagermeister," Spin explained, laughing and giving Dean a high five. After the initial burning and sensation of vomiting went away, I downed two more cups. It was then that I realized how quiet Cody had gotten.

"Cody, baby, are you okay?"

Cody looked up at me, his face pale. He shook his head slowly before he proceeded to throw up all over Dean's couch and plush carpet.

I jumped off the couch and immediately staggered, landing in Spin's arms.

Dean grabbed Cody and dragged him to the bathroom.

"I have to go check on Cody," I mumbled, pulling away from Spin. I stumbled and Spin caught my arm.

"Sit down, Lexi. I'll go." Spin lowered me into a chair and went after them. 

The room titled and whirled beneath my feet, and I buried my face in my hands, squeezing my eyes shut.

I wasn't sure how much time had passed when I heard Dean's voice.

"Lexi, get up. Cody needs you."

I raised my head and stared at Dean through blurry eyes.

"Cody? Is he okay?"

"Yeah, he's in my room with Spencer. They wanted me to come get you."

I stood carefully, afraid of falling, or vomiting, or both. Dean slipped his arm around my waist and braced my weight as we climbed the stairs to his bedroom. Dean opened the door and led me to the bed. I sat down heavily and looked around.

"Where's Spin and Cody?" I asked.

Dean shut the door. 

"They must've went back to the bathroom. I'm sure they'll come back soon."

Dean had a devilish smile on his face when he sat beside me on the bed. He brushed a lock of hair away from my face.

"You look incredible, Lexi," he said softly. 

"Thank you," I whispered uncomfortably, my heart starting to pound. I tried to slide away from him, but he grabbed my wrist, squeezing tightly.

"Don't pull away from me, Lexi. It hurts my feelings."

He stroked my face, my neck, his hand slowly working its way down my stomach. I let out a frightened whimper.

"Dean, please, don't." My voice quivered. I tried again to pull away from him, but he seized me once again, holding both wrists in one hand and pushing me back on the bed, shifting his weight on top of me.

Dean kissed my neck. Tears began streaming down my cheeks. He bit me, hard, and I cried out. Dean clamped a hand over my mouth.

"Shut up. Don't scream or things will get very bad for you. I'll bring the whole baseball team in here for a turn, you hear me?"

My heart thundered in my chest. I nodded, terrified. Dean slid his hand off my mouth and unzipped his jeans. He grabbed my sweater and ripped it, the sound of the fabric tearing away from my body making me cry even harder.

"Dean, don't. Please, please, stop," I sobbed as he fumbled with my jeans. I got one hand free and raked my nails across his face, drawing blood.

"Bitch," he snarled, slapping me so hard that my vision went dark. My idea of defense hardly slowed him down, and as he pushed into me, I wept.

Oh, Cody, I'm so sorry.

I choked out a scream, and Dean tried to cover my mouth, but I fought to keep his hands away.

"Shut up," he snapped, hitting me again. I continued to wail, ignoring his threat from earlier. Every time I cried out, he hit me, getting rougher each time.

At the same time Dean grunted and collapsed on top of me, the bedroom door splintered loudly and snapped open.

"You son of a bitch!"

I knew that voice anywhere. 

Dean bailed up lightning fast, and I struggled to a sitting position. Spin's eyes locked on my battered face. I'll never forget the look in his eyes if I live a thousand years. Those timberwolf eyes howled with a pain so fierce and a rage so deep I was sure it could rip the house down around us. Time seemed frozen, all of us with it. Then it started moving so fast, too fast. Spin darted over to me and caressed my face, his eyes brimming with tears.

"I'm so sorry, Lex," he whispered.

Dean was trying to sneak out of the room. Spin let out a vicious snarl and attacked. He tackled Dean full force and knocked him to the floor. The two of them rolled around for a moment before Spin gained an advantage and began pummeling Dean's face, a string of profanities streaming from his mouth. I thought of Blake, of Cody's dad, and now Dean, but this time in a house full of witnesses. I couldn't do this again. I couldn't let Spin do this again.

"Spin, stop! Stop!" I shrieked.

Spin heard me and raised his head, tears rolling freely down his cheeks. Dean was moaning in pain beneath him, his arms over his face. Thinking Dean was in no shape to follow, Spin stood shakily. He scooped me off the bed as though I was a small child and headed for the stairs, where the party was still in full swing. 

"Where's Cody?" I whimpered.

"Passed out in the car. Don't try to say anything. Let's just get you to a hospital."

We were at the top of the stairs when I looked back over Spin's shoulder. Dean was running at us, his face a mask of blood and fury. The sharp blade in his hand caught the light and shimmered.

"Spin, watch out!" My scream was so loud that the entire house fell quiet. The music stopped, and all eyes focused on us.

Spin didn't even have the chance to turn around.

I was still clutched tightly in his arms when Dean dug the knife deep into his back.

Spin lost his footing, and the two of us tumbled down the stairs. We hit the floor hard, and my vision was stained red as blood flowed into my eyes. My brother lay a couple of feet from me, and, sobbing hysterically, I crawled to him. Dropping my head onto his shoulder, I gave in to the darkness that tugged at the corners of my mind.