~*~*~*~
I woke up on Valentine's Day with a groan and a bitter taste in my mouth. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and I was ready to kill something. Why, might you ask? Because Sam had been continuously reminding me of how Dean liked to spend what he called Unattached-Drifter's Christmas and asking me what I had planned with Lincoln with an unreadable smirk.
Shoot me.
Lincoln and I hadn't spoken since the break up, so I wasn't sure if we were on good terms or not. Either way, considering I'd been using him as an excuse for lessons with Gabriel, the boys were definitely expecting me to go on some big romantic shindig tonight while Dean was going to go bang every unattached woman from Main Street to town square. Great.
Having recognized some time ago that I actually had some sort of feelings toward the man was not helping my mental state at all. Now I had stupid obtrusive thoughts—how's my hair? Did he like my shirt? He was checking out my ass, right?—barging into my head at all hours of the day while small bouts of jealousy crept up at the most inopportune moments. I felt like I was in high school again, and we all know how much I liked high school. Sometimes I thought how, if I could shoot every butterfly flapping around in my stomach, all of my problems would be solved in record time.
Pew pew, you little shits.
Making my way downstairs, I found Dean and Sam sipping their morning coffee at the tables and discussing a new case. Sam waved good morning while Sparky simply nodded in acknowledgment of my presence as I went to pour a cup for myself. With a mug that read 'don't talk to me', I added cream before leaning against the counter and sipping quietly while listening to their conversation.
"Well my money's on demonic or ghost possession." Dean said, taking a long sip before setting down his empty cup and waving a finger at his brother. "Only way something like that's gonna happen."
"Something like what?" I crossed one arm over my chest while I continued holding my mug with the other.
"New case Bobby called in 'bout an hour ago." Sam filled in for me. He swung his laptop around so I could see the screen. Lit up nice and bright was an article from Dubois, Wyoming stating the deaths of a man and a woman. "A couple allegedly ate each other to death last night. Sounds pretty supernatural to me."
My nose scrunched in disgust. "Wow. Thank you for that. Just what I needed to make this morning even better." Dean gave a small snort of amusement from where he sat, but I didn't look away from the article. "Dubois? What side of the state?"
"West," Sam told me immediately.
I did a little mental math and raised an eyebrow. "That's, what? Ten, eleven hours? If we leave now we'll get there around 1800 hours. You boys ready for another case after everything that went down yesterday? I mean, Cass is barely recovered. He's still in my guest bed."
Dean shrugged. "We're fine." My eyebrows furrowed skeptically, but I let it go. Instead, I leaned over and picked up the coffee pot he'd been eyeing before walking over to refill his glass. Black. Just how he liked it. "You're a saint." He breathed out, grabbing the hot mug with a look of adoration.
"Shut up. So do you guys need help? This looks freaky in a new kinda way." I remarked, leaning back against the counter with my own mug now that I'd returned the pot to its warmer.
Sam shook his head, hiding an almost mischievous glint in his eyes. "Don't you have plans with Lincoln tonight? We can't ask you to come." The tone was off, making me raise an eyebrow at the question. Dean paused in the middle of sipping his drink, face darkening at his brother's words.
"Plans with Lincoln? I don't have—oh, yeah. Plans with Lincoln." For about five seconds, I'd managed to forget about stupid Valentine's Day. On the bright side, I did have a session with Gabriel scheduled for today, but it's pretty sad when Gabriel has become the 'bright side' in my life. A sigh fell from me as I was too tired to feign excitement for my fake date. "I'll just meet you guys out there tomorrow, then." Without even a glance my way, Dean stood from the table. Leaving his coffee where it sat, he walked out of the room mumbling something about having to pack. That's odd. I thought as I eyed him warily while innocently enjoying the view. My gaze was pulled away only when I noticed Sam staring intently at me. I'd been caught. "What?" My voice came out sounding rather defensive, which only made him smirk.
"Nothing. Nothing at all." He closed his laptop as he continued to stare me down.
With a shake of my head in an attempt to ignore the strange behavior, I moseyed over to the table and sat in Dean's previous spot. "You're being weird."
"And you're being stupid."
"Excuse me?" I huffed, meeting Sam's gaze. His head shook as we held eye contact for a few more moments. "Please elaborate." The wind whistled outside, making me grip my mug a little tighter in response.
A small smile tugged at the corner of Sam's lips before he spoke. "I know you broke up with Lincoln." My heart stopped as that one sentence shook me to my core. He knew. How? Did he know about Gabriel? Was he going to try to stop me? My hands began to tremble as I set my mug down.
"What makes you say that?" It took all I had to keep my voice level.
The sunlight flooded in through the kitchen window and caused me to squint at my best friend as he contemplated how to tell me what he wanted to. "I called him last night. Dean," Sam chuckled softly, "well, let's just say Dean was worried Lincoln wouldn't be able to find your favorite candy before Valentine's Day."
"My favorite-?" the words caught in my throat as my mouth hung open in confusion. "He knows my favorite-?" For some reason, this knowledge that Dean Winchester knew my favorite candy had rendered me incapable of cognitive speech.
The knowing look only settled deeper onto Sam's features. "Yup. So he had me call Lincoln to make sure you wouldn't be disappointed. It's also the reason he said we have to leave today. 'Give you free range of the house', he said. But, when I called your boyfriend, he informed me you two had broken up earlier this month." My face seemed to be as red as my pajama pants. "Now, I haven't mentioned anything to Dean yet, but why would you lie about something like that?"
Silence followed his words as he waited for my explanation. But what could I do? Gabriel had made me promise, and I couldn't risk losing my only practice dummy. Sitting on my hands, I managed to bite my lip as my gaze fell to the table. "I was embarrassed." The mumble that came out was quiet enough that Sam had to lean forward to hear. "You know I'd never really had a relationship other than Lincoln, and I just didn't want you guys to pity me this close to Valentine's Day."
The youngest Winchester watched me as if trying to decide whether or not he believed the words coming out of my mouth. Finally, he opened his mouth. "You know he talks about you all the time?"
"Lincoln?" My eyebrows furrowed.
"Dean."
The blush flooding my cheeks was too big to be hidden by the one hand I leaned my cheek into. "Uh, okay." My gaze remained on the table. At least he didn't know anything about Gabriel.
Sam chuckled. "And as close as we are, I think I can tell when you've got a thing for someone."
"I thought the point of a guy best friend was not to have stupid, mushy, heart to heart sessions."
From my peripheral vision, I watched Sam run a hand through his obnoxiously long hair. "Ando, I don't want to make you talk more than you have to, but you two are moodier than usual today. Something's going on between you two, but you're both too stupid and stubborn to act on it." The harshness of the accusation made my jaw drop and my eyes snap back to his face. He was smirking. "There's those big brown eyes. Struck a nerve, have I?"
Forcing myself to take a moment and breathe, I replied matter-of-factly, "Listen, Jolly. Let's pretend for a moment that I do have a thing for your brother. Purely hypothetical!" I pointed a finger at him in emphasis. "What would you want me to do? Huh? Tell him and potentially get ridiculed while ruining our friendship? Tell him, get brushed off, and watch him sleep with other girls while ruining our friendship? Or, if by some small chance he doesn't find me completely repulsive, become one of his unattached drifters for one night and then ruin our friendship?" Sam blinked at me slowly, taking in my words. "So, I would personally rather save my hypothetical self some grief and let her salt and burn any feelings she has because there's no hope there."
He watched me as I forced myself to breathe slowly. When he spoke next, his voice had fallen to a softer tone. "But what if it works out? I know my brother. One of you needs to try."
I shook my head. "I appreciate what you're trying to do here, Sam, I really do. But I'm gonna need to stop our little conversation and pray it never happens again." Footsteps sounded from the stairs and I glanced behind me quickly before staring Sam down. "This never happened, capishé?"
He gave me a sad smile, but nodded. "Yeah. Capishé."
I picked up the warm mug and forced myself to take a sip as Dean walked back into the kitchen with his leather jacket now comfortably covering his shoulders. "Get your stuff, Sammy." He ordered, walking to the coffee pot and coming back to fill my glass and top off his own. With mine and Sam's conversation still fresh in my mind, I couldn't help but blush as he did so. Especially when he pulled out the creamer and added just the right amount. How long had he been paying attention like that? I caught Sam smirking and I had to look away before I accidentally admitted something.
The Big Friendly Giant pushed away from the table with a squeak of the chair before making his way upstairs. Getting up, I started on making breakfast they could eat before they got on the road. "Sure you packed everything?" I asked after a few moments of silence, dropping bacon into the frying pan.
"Yeah. I also grabbed some holy oil in case it's a feathery bastard." The comment made me chuckle softly. Silence fell between us as the bacon sizzled softly in the grease. "Do you know what you and Lincoln are doing tonight?" His voice was soft and hesitant as if he had been working up the courage to ask.
Shaking my head, I tried to keep my conversation with Sam from replaying. I hated lying to him. Months ago, I wouldn't have batted an eye. Now? Well, now these two idiots were far too important to me. "I'm, uh, not sure. I've never really been with someone on Valentine's Day." I couldn't look at him as I spoke, afraid I would open my mouth and let the truth pour out.
"Yeah. Neither have I." He tried to force out a laugh while adding, "Just don't do anything in my bed."
"Not without you in it." I responded, not missing a beat. Glancing over my shoulder at him as I grabbed three plates, I couldn't help but enjoy the blush that crept into his cheeks. Again, I was reminded of Sam's words. Dean and I were close, but did he have feelings for me? He's the one that stopped anything before it could start. Surely this was all one sided. Right?
Spinning around to place the finished breakfast sandwiches on the island, Sparky caught my gaze. "Are you happy with Mr. Perfect?" Dean's voice had fallen to just above a whisper. "Does he make you laugh?"
Not like I am with you. Not like you do. My brain was fighting the urge to respond truthfully. Dammit! When did I get so sentimental? This had turned from an everyday lustful-potential-one-night-stand to an annoying-middle-school-crush in the span of a few months. What the hell was wrong with me?
Our eye contact held as I stared open mouthed, trying to form a response. For a moment, I thought he was going to walk over to me. A thousand romance novels I would never admit to reading flashed through my mind as he stood from his chair. And maybe they could have happened, had Sam not picked that exact moment to come bumbling into the kitchen. "Ready!" He called with his backpack strung over one shoulder.
Dean and I both jumped, eyes landing on the new arrival with shock. Awkwardness leaked into the air as I quickly grabbed a plate and held it out to him. "Perfect timing! Eat your breakfast." A knowing smirk had landed on the behemoth's face, eyes darting between Dean and I. When he took the plate from my outstretched hand, he couldn't help but wink in a way that made me flush pink in embarrassment. "And give this one to Dean." I ordered, handing him the other plate in punishment. He took it obediently, while I was left biting my cheek anxiously, ready for this day to be over.
XxXxX
"Again."
I growled, wiping off the dust and the hay from my pants before getting back in position. We'd been at this for hours. The second I was back in place, we were moving like two cogs in a machine. Gabriel knew I was off my game today, and it just made him push me that much harder. The melody fell from my lips, landing on him until he was able to get me to hesitate. The second he broke through, he was barking at me to restart.
"Again."
My hands flung up in the air in exasperation. "Enough! Dammit, Gabe, I need a break!"
The bright eyed angel glared at where I stood. "Oh, I'm sorry. Why don't we just take a few minutes, drink some wine and do a little online shopping!" His sarcasm was nails on a chalkboard in my ears. Each word was a testament to how I wasn't good enough. "Is that what you're going to tell the Devil? Gonna ask Lucy to take a breather so you can work up the courage to end him? You'll be dead before you've started."
"I'm trying." I spit out, stomping angrily toward my water bottle and downing quite a bit.
"You're trying? My bad! That makes everything better! Not. You can't be trying anymore, Andrea. You have to be succeeding. You're improving, but if you can't get your magic to stay on him even if you hesitate, or take a pause, then you're finished. You have to find a way to hold the magic without holding a note."
I groaned, screwing the cap back on and wiping the condensation off on my thighs. "It's not an exact science, you know? No one wrote books on how to handle my freak powers."
"Listen, kid." Gabriel ran a hand through his shiny brown locks while continuing to stare me down. "I put all of my eggs in this basket. Neutrality is one thing, but to openly go against either side? It's a death sentence. Now I'm here because I think you've got what it takes, but if this aspect doesn't improve," he shook his head with a shrug, "well, you might as well hand over Sam and Dean yourself."
"Shut up."
The angel's eyebrows arched. "Oh, touched a nerve there, have we?" A wicked smile came on him as he stepped toward me threateningly. "Don't want to think about your precious boys being forced to kill each other? Don't want to imagine them pushed to the back of their own minds, forced to watch everything they do from a backseat perspective?"
"I said, shut up."
An evil glint appeared in his eyes. "Why? Probably a good thing Dean has one last Valentine's Day to play the field before he's stuck being Michael's joy ride for the rest of eternity."
I growled loudly, flinging down my water bottle and sprinting at him. It was obvious that he was baiting me, but I was out for blood. He flung me back before I could land a punch, but my roll out of it had greatly improved. Back on my feet and fueled with the raw desire to protect my people from the fate he spoke of, I went at his throat again. I was faster than normal, allowing me to land a few punches before being barrel rolled away in the air. These ones were more difficult to recover from, but not impossible.
Before either of us could comprehend it, I was back on my feet. This time, my mouth opened to sing. I was breathy and the amount of air I would need to sing and fight was far too much, but this wasn't just about me. This was for Bobby, Sam, Ellen and Jo. For Castiel, Jody, Lincoln and Dean. I had to be better. Emotion overflowed into each note as I screamed at him to hold still and forget that he could see me. The words sounded sickly sweet and dangerous as they wrapped around him and held him in place. But I needed more air than a usual pause. Had it been a human I was charming, there would be an almost natural lasting effect for a moment or two after a note ended. But an arch angel? I was lucky to have my voice settle on them at all.
As I came to a note right before I had to breathe, I punched him in the face. The note didn't last, but it bought me a few more seconds. I continued onto my second mantra of the song, this time pouring everything I had into it as I landed a hand on his shoulder in a death grip.
The reaction was instantaneous. Gabriel stiffened, the magic holding as I breathed a few more rapid breaths. After five out of breath exhales, Gabriel shuddered and my hand fell from his shoulder. "What the hell was that?" He asked as I wiped the sweat from my brow.
I shrugged, exhausted from the overexertion of both body and magic. "That was better, yeah?" My hands landed on my waist as I tried to catch my breath.
"Better?" Gabriel shook his head with a wide grin in disbelief. "Kid, that was succeeding! Was it the physical touch or the emotion that got it to work, you think?" He prodded, trying to analyze everything as he followed me back over to my water bottle.
"Both?"
He applauded as I drank my water. "That was incredible! And we've only had two weeks! Come time, we'll have Lucifer and Michael eating out of the palm of your hand."
I swallowed hard. "Kinky." The comment was enough to make him laugh while I took another swig.
"I'm serious, little mermaid." His eyes softened as I met his gaze. "That was what we needed. We're in this thing now."
I scoffed. "So everything these past two weeks has been, what? Warm up?" He shrugged in reply, making me roll my eyes. "Alright, old man. But get me angry like that again, this little mermaid will roll into the Hulk."
A full laugh rumbled from him, filling the space around us and erasing any anger that had been lingering. "That's what we're hoping for." The evil glint slipped back into his eyes as he smirked and and repeated the one word I had quickly grown to hate. "Again."
Scratch that.
There was definitely still some anger in me.
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Hey, guys! I hope you enjoyed this! I would have posted it sooner, but I wasn't sure what song I wanted with it. I chose Eye of the Tiger for the training sequence haha. I have to run to my Numerical Analysis class, but I love you all!
Stay safe and healthy!
All my love,
BrieD