FALL, 1999
This family was a stubborn one. Never taking her pranks too seriously...even laughing at them. Being in as many homes as she'd been in in the past 16 years, you'd think she'd led this family to their limit. Yet, she still hasn't. Damn toxic positivity.
She never let pranking interfere with her school work. At her locker, she bit the inside of her cheek, tapping the pen against her chin as she thought of anything new to add to the list. Considering that she had just turned 16, her Foster Parents would assume that she'd be maturing and setting the pranking to the side for her studies, but she was very good at balancing the two. And when the couple realized that nothing would stop her, they had no choice but to contact the agency and talk about her return.
As much as her plan worked, it still hurt that this couple would give her back just like all the others. None wanted to deal with her mischief and none wanted to give her a chance. She closed the journal and tossed it into the box next to her. The only thing that remained in her locker was the text books and notebooks that she'd still use for the rest of the week until the agency would come and get her. She closed her locker and fixed the bag on her shoulders, leaning down to pick up the box. And when she got barely a few steps in, the bottom of the box gave out and everything fell through. She stood still for a second, throwing her head back with a groan and dropped the box. She took off her bag and opened it, ready to throw in whatever she can't carry.
Sam made his way towards the front of the school to meet Dean in the car, but paused when he saw a girl on the floor, picking up little knick knacks off the ground and toss them into her backpack. He glanced at the door, finding the black Impala with Dean leaning against it. He sighed and walked over to the girl, picking up a few things on the way. He knelt down without saying a word, picking up her books and sticky notes.
"You don't have to," the girl said. "I'm perfectly capable."
"Just helping. It'll beat me up later if I think that I didn't help the girl with a mess in the middle of the hallway," he replied, picking up another novel and looking at it. "Little Women, huh?"
She scoffed, taking the sticky notes from his hand. "What, you got something against the March sisters?" She teased, dropping the pack of sticky notes in her bag.
"Not my cup of tea, but not something I wouldn't try," Sam replied, still holding the books. Cielo snorted quietly and zipped up her bag. Sam noticed the patches on the cover. He followed as she stood up, swinging the heavy bag onto her back. When she finally looked up, she smiled a little bit, staring into his eyes.
"Hm, I like your eyes," she mutters.
Sam stutters and chuckles awkwardly, trying to ignore the fact that his face is heating up like an oven. "M-Mine?"
Cielo nods, still smiling. "Mhm."
"I, uh, thank you. I like your..." he looks down, seeing that he was still holding the books. He holds them out for her to take, "books. I like your books."
Cielo takes them, still smiling up at him. "Really? These patches are from trying to hide the covers with paper bags but, uh, you know."
Sam is still smiling as he shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "Why would you do that?"
Cielo shrugs, holding the books to her chest. "Can't show people that you're a nerd nowadays, can you?" She jokes. She didn't really care, but it used to get to a point where the books were ripped up in front of her. She hid the covers and wrote a random subject on the paper so it looked like a text book.
Sam chuckles, leaning down to grab the forgotten cardboard that was supposed to be a box. "Heading out?" He asks her.
Cielo nods, "I am. Are you?"
Sam nods and the two are walking side by side. He finally addresses his curiosities. "Are you moving?"
"Something like that," she replies. "I'm leaving at the end of the week."
Something in Sam is frowning at the fact that he just met her and she'd be leaving without hardly knowing her. "Oh..." Sam frowns. "Why?"
Cielo takes in a deep breath, deciding carefully how to answer his question. "Why not?"
Sam chuckles, nodding as they step outside. "Fair."
"Sammy!" He hears. He looks up, seeing his brother wave him down.
"Sammy?" The girl asks him.
"Just a stupid name my brother calls me. It's just Sam."
"Okay, Just Sam. I'm Cielo." Even her name was pretty. "Uh, I should get going. Tim and Marge will have my head if I make them wait another minute," she says. She grabs the cardboard from Sam.
"Tim and Marge? You call your parents by their names?" He asks in disbelief. If he did that to his father, God knows how he'd react.
Cielo chuckles, shaking her head. "They're not my parents." Sam pauses, unable to react. "I'll see you tomorrow, Just Sam."
Dean is grinning from ear to ear with his hands in his father's leather jacket. "I see you made a new friend," Dean comments.
Sam rolls his eyes and gets into the car. Dean laughs, walking around the back of the car to get to the driver's seat.
⛧⛧⛧
It had been a couple days since their first meeting, but it seemed like they had known each other for ages. They automatically clicked and spent their free periods and lunches together. On the third day, Cielo's foster parents even let him come over for dinner. That was the day that Cielo met Dean.
She liked Dean. As a person, of course. She liked how he had a "give 'em Hell" attitude and the bad boy appearance, but still managed to have the biggest soft spot for his little brother. Cielo always wished she had a sibling and not one that was uptight and tried controlling her every move just because they had "more experience" in the Foster Care system.
It was Friday in the end and both of them were frowning as they walked out of the school. Cielo trusted Sam with her life story on the fourth day... yesterday. He couldn't believe that a family didn't want such an amazing person like her. She was practically a blessing to everyone she came in contact with. And, he couldn't believe that the day where she would leave was finally here. Dean had gotten to the school early to find a good parking space so that he could say bye to Cielo. He thought of a way— anything that would be able to get this to not happen.
Sam had never felt as heard and as happy as he was when he was with Cielo. She brought out a side of him that Dean was convinced was only for him. They related to each other through the traveling and jumping from school to school.
Sam finally had his person and she was going to be taken away. The only thing he could think about was letting Sam go to every school that she would go to until they graduated, but that would be a bigger issue with John. He thought about asking John to adopt her, but with his record, he refused to let him be near Cielo
Sam and Cielo left the building. He was holding her bag on his shoulder while she held her notebooks in her hand. "I wish I didn't cause so much trouble for them anymore," she admits. "If I had known I was gonna have a best friend here."
"I'm not staying long either, Ci," Sam reminds her. "I'm leaving next week." That was a complete lie. He actually didn't know the next time he'd be leaving.
Cielo gives a shakey sigh as she spots Tim's car. They approach Dean and the Impala and she smiles sadly up at him. "Give the next ones Hell," Dean tells her.
"I plan to," she replies with a smile. He smiles and is surprised when Cielo wraps an arm around his neck, the other still holding her books. He bites his cheek, unsure what to do with the affection he's given, but he hugs back.
She separates first, smiling up at him and grabs her bag from Sam. She hugs him the tightest. "I'll miss you," she tells him.
"I'll miss you too," he replies and she feels a lump in her throat. She lets out a breath and kisses his cheek before getting down and walking off, not wanting for them to see her cry. Sam's demeanor instantly changed and it was like the happy, bubbly kid that Cielo brought out was suddenly gone.
"C'mon," Dean tells him gently as Cielo gets into the car. Sam waits until the car is completely gone and out of sight before turning and getting into the car.
⛧⛧⛧
"Dad, I'm—" Dean tries to say.
"Dean, enough," John snaps. "I said to put it to rest."
"Look at him!" Dean snaps back, motioning to Sam in the car. "He hasn't said anything in weeks! Just talk to Bobby!" He begs.
"Dean..." John said in a warning tone.
"Bobby has Diana, right? Maybe he'll take in Cielo! I just need to talk—" John hits Dean harshly, getting him to stop talking right away. Dean closes his eyes sadly and sighs.
John points a finger at Dean. "I'm going to say this once and that's it. Let this go. He'll get over it. It's a girl, not anything more. That's final. You hear me?"
"Yes, sir," Dean replies sadly. John turns, walking to his truck and getting in. Dean watches as John leaves, clenching his fists tightly. Dean gets into the car with Sam.
Sam sighs, looking at him. "Told you," he mumbles.
"Don't you worry," he says, making sure that John is completely gone before he turns on the car and starts reversing out of the parking lot. "We'll get her back. I made you that promise and I meant it," he says.
"Dad's gonna kill you," Sam mumbles.
"Bobby won't let him."
"We're going to Bobby's?"
Dean grins at his brother. "I'm not giving up that easily."