First off the disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters nor am I making any money writing fanfiction about it. Just taking the boys for a joyride through my imagination, hoping you guys enjoy the ride as much as I did.
This is a stand-alone piece to the WvsO series I've been writing that takes place after Renegade. Oddly enough its an AU to what is already an AU series. Cal and Sam were never intended as an item. I never wanted to see them together. I'd always pictured them as having brotherly/sisterly feelings toward each other. Then I started writing Renegade and put them on the road alone together. This is what came out of it.
For the record? This is not how Renegade will end. It's just a one-off that wouldn't leave me be until it was written. Still, now that it's done... I've got to say, I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.
Reviews are love! Please leave one, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks! :)
Four Times Cal and Sam Were Forced to Kiss,
And One Time They Weren't.
The Upper Class Hotel Room in Washington
The first time it happened they considered it a hazard of the job. Two to a room, even if you got two beds, people just assumed. Sam had dealt with it before, folks thinking he and Dean were a couple rather than brothers. He and Cal were no exception, especially considering how in tune they'd become after months of being on the road alone together.
The hotel they'd decided on was much higher class than Sam was used to. Old habits die hard. He'd left his duffel bag wide open and the maid service had been freaked out by the guns and knives in full view. The cops had come knocking mid-afternoon taking them completely by surprise. "Who is it?" Cal had whispered quietly when he put his eye to the peep hole. He'd gestured the numbers five and zero with his hands so as not to tip off the guys on the other side of the door. Eyes wide she threw her hands up, the universal sign for 'what now? That's when the idea hit.
By the time the second knock came, with the warning that they were coming in, the duffel bag was stashed under the bed. When they opened the door what they found was Sam sitting on the edge of the bed, Cal straddling his hips, relieving him off his shirt and kissing him for all she was worth. The woman had always been good at putting on a show and this was no different than any other time a performance had been in order. Sam's hands roved up her sides, one settling on the small of her back and pulling her in toward him. The other cupped the side of her face and slid into her hair as he deepened the kiss. They didn't even acknowledge that anyone else was in the room until the manager let out an embarrassed cough. Only then did Sam slide his eyes over Cal's shoulder as he mouthed a path across her collar bone. The primal look he leveled at the poor guy had him taking a step back toward the door.
That's when Cal turned, tousled and unashamed, to face the men at the door. "Oh, shit! I'm sorry. Were we making too much noise?" Her smile was sin incarnate, all but inviting the men to join in. The hotel manager let his eyes wander from her kiss swollen lips all the way down to the milky white mounds of her breasts peeking over the lace of her bra. "Um, no. Not exactly. We had a complaint from one of the ladies from housekeeping. Something about weaponry in the room?"
Pink lips forming a perfect little 'oh' as if she only just realized what this meant. Turning to Sam she blushed prettily and stage whispered a question he never, ever thought he'd hear a girl ask him. "Did you leave our S&M bag open again?" As if this wasn't the first time. "Shit! I think maybe…" But the rest of what he said was drowned out by the laughter of the cops. Cal tucked her face into Sam's shoulder, as if to hide from what had just been revealed. "Our sincerest apologies, sir." The manager covered his tracks swiftly and efficiently, ushering the police officers out. False alarm gentlemen, I apologize for the inconvenience. Then as he pulled the door closed he made eye contact with Sam and offered up a final apology.
"Please consider your stay here complimentary and rest assured that I will be having a talk with housekeeping about the privacy of our guests." Then nodded and left with an awkward as you were.
They'd laughed it off as being one of the best performances of their lives. After all, they saw each other as family. Cal had been with Dean until he'd run off. Fran was still waiting for Sam up North. The first time it had been easy to pass off the electric buzz, that current running just under the skin, as fear they wouldn't be able to pull off the ruse. Neither admitted just how incredibly hot a moment it had turned out to be. It had just been a kiss after all. A one-off, right?
The Cheap Motel in Boise
A couple of jobs down the road it happened again, and this time Cal wasn't the one who initiated. Well, not entirely. Sam had ventured down the hallway for some ice to keep the beer they'd picked up cold. They were on the tail end of a hunt, having just switched accommodations looking for anonymity while they rested up and prepared for their next move. He was barefoot in nothing but jeans and a t-shirt, unarmed and exposed. Head half in the ice machine he heard a familiar voice from behind call him by name; his real name, the one that still wasn't one hundred percent free and clear of the law this side of the border.
He'd never really be sure how it was that Cal had managed to hear it through the door or how she'd just known that he was in trouble. All he did know was that suddenly she was there, standing in the doorway of their room in nothing but a pair of panties and one of his suit shirts with the sleeves rolled up. "What's taking so long, Darryl? I'm getting lonely in here." That smoky voice, those bedroom eyes and just enough cleavage to make the whole thing entirely indecent was genius. Sam didn't need to be clued in.
This was Cal's game. She used whatever was on hand and by the time she was done everyone believed whatever she wanted to peddle. "Just, ah, getting the ice you wanted." He breathed, sauntering back over to where she'd artfully draped herself against the door frame. "Mm, did I tell you what I was planning to do with that ice darlin'?" It was more a moan than a statement; designed to make a man stand up and take notice. Sam was a man after all and he did indeed take notice.
Forearm braced on the doorjamb above her head he leaned in toward her. His long dark hair brushed against her cheeks and forehead, noses barely touching as he hesitated. It was a move designed to draw out the moment, build suspense and ultimately make that first touch the best it could possibly be. Sam was proving to the woman that she wasn't necessarily the only one able to tease a person to distraction.
He tasted her gasp as their lips slotted together and then dove in. The sparks were a surprise. They were everywhere, he saw them in her eyes and felt them racing around under her skin. He could feel them in the pit of his stomach and everywhere their bodies touched. It was as if the whole world had caught fire, exploded and was now showering down all around them, inside of them. For that one moment in time they were helpless, held completely at the mercy of their bodies. Leaning in was only natural. Pushing herself up and into the solid warmth of his body the only thing that seemed to matter to her.
The annoyed huff of the person who had called out his name was followed by retreating footsteps. "I guess I was wrong." Somewhere in the distance as the elevator bell dinged. They indulged a little longer. Got to be sure they're gone or it'll all be for nothing. Not at all because this feels incredible. That giant hand on her hip, that long arm snaking around her back ending in another hand holding the back of her head; she was wrapped in Sam. It was intoxicating.
They stopped when breathing became next to impossible. Foreheads not quite touching they shared breath and did their best to get a grip without freaking out. Eyes asked questions that had impossible answers. "Check out time." She breathed hoarsely. No way they could risk sticking around now. Besides, it would take some time on the road to put this particular incident behind them. "Yeah, um, thanks… for that." Hard to believe shy was even an option after a kiss like that, but there it was. Just a small part of Sam's charm.
"Good thing we haven't unpacked yet." A huff of laughter cleansing them of whatever awkwardness that lingered. They'd only done what was necessary after all. "I'll, uh, get this dry cleaned before we need it again." Cal was all about fairness, after all. "You know what, you hang on to it. It, uh, suits you. I can always get a new one."
Things changed a after that. Not in big ways, but small subtle ones. Each little difference building into something bigger neither was willing to admit to just yet.
That One Time in Salem (or: What happens in Salem, stays in Salem)
The third time wasn't so cut and dry. It'll always be a foggy memory, couldn't be otherwise with an incubus pushing them over that edge. Bobby had made some vague reference to some aphrodisiac pollen that might have also been involved, but that was a little too weird for Cal to want to give it any kind of credibility. He was probably just pissed off because he'd been the one to walk in on her and Sam en dishabille.
From what they'd managed to piece together, the wiccan coven they'd been favoring for a string of murders had cast a summoning spell to get the hunters out of the picture. The incubus had showed up at the bar where Cal and Sam had been gathering intel on one of the members who just happened to be the bartender. Surprise, surprise the bartender had conveniently called in sick the night Cal had showed up to grill him for information but that wasn't necessarily a problem. Not when there was tall-dark-and-handsome over by the pool table eyeing her up like she was everything he'd ever wanted and more.
Sam let her be for a while. The way he'd figured it, she hadn't gone wild since before Dean had dumped her. Call it a one-off but she was entitled to having a little fun on her own terms every once in a while. Not that she was ever one to wait for permission, or require it at all for that matter.
It wasn't until she was flirting with every man in the place, without bias whatsoever, that Sam realized something was wrong. Cal had what a person could call discerning tastes. If you touched her and she didn't want you to, you knew it and it never happened again. It wasn't like Cal to let everyman and his best friend lay their play on her. It took minutes for her to go from shooting pool to inciting a freaking orgy right there in the middle of the floor.
Sam had to shoot a round into the ceiling just to break it up enough that he could pull Cal out of the middle of it. Another round went right into the wall above a couple of guys who wouldn't leave well enough alone while he pushed the half naked woman out the door.
"Son of a bitch, Cal! What the hell's gotten into you?" The last time they'd had these kinds of issues, she'd been sporting a pair of honest-to-God wings. "I don't know Sammy." She giggled, writhing around in the passenger seat, hands roving all over herself like she couldn't get enough. "It's just that it's so hot in here and I'm feeling so… Mmm." The last coherent memory Sam had was of Cal taking his right hand off the wheel and putting one of his fingers in her mouth, tonguing the pad of it as she pulled it slowly out again.
No one would ever know how they'd managed to get from the car that had been sloppily abandoned on the shoulder of the interstate to their motel room, forty-five minutes walk away. What they did know for sure was what Bobby walked in on shortly after their arrival.
"Oh for the love of…" he didn't finish, too busy covering his eyes. "Didn't you kids get my messages?" Sam snarled before biting at Cal's lip, nipping at her chin and mouthing the graceful lines of her neck and collar bone. They were too far gone to care what poor Bobby had to say apparently. Cal had been reduced to wanton mewling, just taking whatever Sam was offering which thankfully wasn't much…yet.
With an "aw, hell!" when they didn't even stop long enough to acknowledge he was there Bobby made his move. It wasn't any different than separating a couple of stray cats in heat. Nothing half the contents of a spray bottle couldn't fix. By the time Bobby was done with them, they were both dripping with whatever concoction he'd put together as an antidote and incredibly embarrassed.
"Next time check your damned messages so we don't have to go through this again, would ya?" A not so gentle, Bobby-style admonition that any other time would have had Cal snorting with mirth. Instead both Cal and Sam just averted their eyes from anything breathing in the room, including each other. "So does this mean… are we okay now?" Cal wanted to know. Never mind that the best indication was that she could even ask a question in the first place.
"Yeah. You're okay. If you can call this," a short, all encompassing wave in their general direction, "okay. Just don't wash that stuff off until I gank that damned incubus. Sit tight and just… don't." Sam snuck a sheepish look over at Cal as she was adjusting her bra then looked quickly away in case she caught him. Then Cal sent a long appreciative look right back at him, rubbing the pad of her thumb over her slightly swollen bottom lip. "Damn, Winchester, where did you learn how to kiss like that?" Bobby dumped the rest of the bottle over her while she was mid-wolf whistle, just to be on the safe side. She still couldn't keep her eyes off Sam, but at least she wasn't putting any moves on him.
He ended up having to call Rufus in to babysit while he ran off to kill a sex demon. Neither had ever let them forget it.
And Then It All Came Crashing Down
One year after setting off to find Dean, the world as they knew it came crashing down around them, All in one night.
First Sam got a call from home. It had been months since they'd been able to make the trip back over the border to visit Fran. She had news and it wasn't exactly the good kind. Well, it was and it wasn't. The devil was in how you looked at it.
"I'm sorry Sam. Sometimes these things just happen." Fran had begun to move on. There were a slew of good reasons why she should. Maggie and Jason needed someone more stable than a Winchester in their lives. She deserved someone who would fall asleep with her at night, wake up next to her in the morning and be there for her every moment in between. She'd found it in Maggie's guidance counselor. "No, it's… yeah, it's okay. You deserve someone who's not always gone. Maggie and Jason need someone they can talk to and who will be there for them in a way that I can't be right now. Don't feel bad Fran. You deserve to be happy and it's clear you are and I don't want you to feel bad for that in the least."
There might have been tears on both ends of the line but they were justified, and they were cleansing. This was the right thing for them both, and they were both level headed enough to see it and be at peace with it. "Listen, I still expect you and that brother of yours to stop by when you can to visit with the kids, alright?" "Of course. Definitely. I'll let you know next time we're near enough to make the trip. Listen I, ah, I have to go. But I'll be in touch, okay? Give them my love. Send some along for Cal too." It was the single most depressing conversation they'd ever shared but it set her free in a way she never had been before and for that Sam was grateful.
He and Cal had been on their way toward Ontario to surprise her, by way of New York, when the call came. Afterward they both thought it best to give Fran a little space to enjoy the normal she'd been gifted with. The change of plan came in the shape of a week of downtime, Cal's New York apartment being their home base for the duration.
They stopped along the way to stock up on the necessities: Ice cream, chocolate and booze to be consumed in that order at Cal's insistence. There was a flaw in the 'hole up and feel sorry for ourselves' plan though, and it became abundantly clear as they got off the elevator and approached the door to the apartment. Someone had beaten them to it.
The sound of the classic rock music blaring through the solid wood door was enough to have steam pouring out of Cal's ears. That it was unlocked only pissed her off more. The real clincher, though, was the way there were clothes strewn haphazardly from the door right on through the apartment. Little black high heeled pumps lay discarded next to a pair of dirty utility boots. Something that could have been a miniskirt hung off the back of her couch. Some sort of dark colored band shirt in the archway leading in to the kitchen, right next to a smutty little black bra that had Cal seeing red. "Oh hell no!" And if Cal was pissed the hell off, Sam was just plain in shock.
Neither wanted to believe where the evidence of what was happening was leading them. Maybe if they didn't actually set eyes on Dean with another woman in the apartment they could just pass it off as a random break in. Except that was impossible. There was no mistaking the throaty laugh that was so unique to Dean, or the distinctly feminine giggle that followed it. "That rat bastard!" And there she was, for the first time since he'd dumped her, in full-on anger management Barbie mode. Before Sam even realized what was happening she had toed off her shoes and pulled the elastic out of her hair.
"Think fast, Sam, and follow my lead. We're about to teach that playboy brother of yours a lesson he's not going to forget." Suddenly her mouth was on his, fingers carding through his hair as she walked him backwards toward the room where that fucking laughter was coming from. This not quite being their first go 'round with the kissing Sam didn't hesitate. Later they would blame muscle memory but in the moment it was just about whatever felt right so they could make it believable. Cal in control and Sam just hanging on for dear life until the ride was over.
When she kicked open the door, he pushed her up against it. One hand gripped her thigh, fingers gently digging into the soft spot behind her knee and pulling it up to waist height so she could hook it over his hip. The other hand pulled down her bra strap, trailing his fingers teasingly across the exposed outer edge of her breast making her gasp with the sensation.
She had two fistfuls of delectable derriere and was grinding up against him like some sort of scarlet woman when Dean finally pulled his head out of his keister. Or rather, pulled Sam right off of Cal. It was quick, messy and completely without ceremony. Dean planted a fist across Sam's face. Sam gave it right back. The woman du jour screamed a little at the sudden onset of unexpected violence and then Cal was standing between two furious Winchesters. "The hell do you think you're doing putting your hands and other parts on her like that man?" Dean growled out angrily.
"Hey, asshole, have we forgotten the little fact that you've been m.i.a. for the last year? Or that you dumped my sweet piece of ass just before you took off?" And at that exact moment Sam was really glad they'd left their equipment, Cal's favorite knives included, in the car. Otherwise it was a pretty sure thing Dean would already be missing a body part or two.
"It was the only way I could keep all of you safe from the feds. Don't you think I've regretted it every single day since then?" It was a macho show of bravado. Typical Dean. He didn't have a leg to stand on and he knew it, but he'd try to redirect and distract until he found a way to make it okay. Good thing Cal wasn't the type to fall for that sort of thing.
"Oh sure, says the guy who broke into my apartment to apparently have a wild roll through the sheets with the hookup of the moment in my own bed. Who the hell do you think you are making any kind of claim or moral judgment on anyone anyway?" The tartlet, who couldn't have been a day over twenty-one, found her voice then and proved herself to Cal.
"Dean? I thought your name was Daniel… and you said this was your place. Oh. Oh, let me guess, you're not an archeologist either are you?" With as much dignity as she could muster in nothing but her underwear and nylons, the girl got up off the bed and smacked him a good one across the face. To Cal she said: "I'm sorry, I had no idea. I'm leaving, and good riddance. If there's anything I can do to make up for this… well, I don't suppose there is but I'll leave my card on the counter on my way out all the same. You just give me a call." And with that she stalked out looking for all the world like an angry lioness, all wild hair and sharp teeth.
Dean made a couple of stalled attempts at explaining and then just ducked out of the room calling after the girl. "Cindy, hey Cindy! Come on! I can explain…" Clearly this was the more salvageable way of spending his evening. Cal had murder in her eyes and Dean was still just looking to bury himself in someone and forget. Suddenly it was very clear that some things would never change and just like that the burnt bridges were jumped across.
Cal didn't move until the door slammed shut behind Dean and the girl. The sound of it was like the gunshot at the start of a race. The moment it reached her ears Cal was in motion. Sam just followed and watched. He handed her the screws and the screwdriver as she changed the locks on the only door in or out of her apartment without a word about how Dean would find a way in, key or no key, if he really wanted to. For her it was the principle of the thing. She'd let him have a key, trusted him enough not to ask for it back and he'd grossly abused the privilege.
"Goddamned Winchester men." She grumbled angrily under her breath, earning herself an interested look from Sam. Still, he said nothing. They didn't call him the smart one for nothing. He trailed along behind her as she combed the apartment for missing items but only found discarded clothing. Mostly women's wear. Each newly found item another very good reason for the changed locks.
The business card was pinned to the fridge and it read Cindy Mackinnon, legal representative. "Hm, well that one could come in handy. I'll have to give her a call in the morning. She could be a decent card in our deck if your brother doesn't manage to screw it all up overnight."
They spent the night burning clothes in the fireplace and watching movies, finally passing out leaning against each other on the couch somewhere past midnight. The next morning Dean called to apologize (probably for Cindy's benefit )to Sam for throwing the punch and to Cal for crossing some very well defined lines. They wouldn't hear from him again for months, but he was the one making contact with them now and that was a good start.
The One With The Monster Fish From the Stone Age
They could have parted ways after that. Dean was very clearly okay and the lines of communication with Sam were restored, if a little sketchy at times. They could have gone their separate ways, Cal to continue in that solitary lifestyle she always claimed suited her best. Sam could have done anything, up to and including pursuing that law degree he'd set his sights on a lifetime and a half before. It had always been an option. Except…
There was a case up in North Bay, Ontario. An old one, granted, but the old ones had a habit of resurfacing with time. This one was no different. Some couple and their dog disappeared back in the fifties, never to be heard or seen from again. In 2006 a fisherman found some bodies at the bottom of Trout Lake where they'd last been seen boating, and the Ontario Provincial Police declared the case closed. Found the boat and everything.
"Except there've been sightings of a monster. The locals call it the Trout Lake Monster. I know, I know. Not exactly original or anything. Gets the point across though." She smiled at Sam, both of them thinking about the giant snake they'd come across in the sewers of New York.
"I dunno Cal. The cops found the bodies, probably matched the DNA with their kids who're still alive. They found the boat. I mean, even the Lake Monster sightings are pretty sketchy. The locals can't agree on whether it's ancient legend or a brand new one for publicity. Even the sightings are weird. Sounds more like a really big fish than anything else." So Sam was skeptical. Fair enough, given his track record with the bigger stuff. Not every case was going to be demons, though. Besides, Cal had left out the best part.
"Yeah, but this one came straight from Bobby. There's a new missing persons case up in North Bay with the right earmark and he figured you might be interested considering the last names were the same." Ah, there we go. He was interested enough to turn her laptop enough to be able to read the e-mail. The name was Campbell.
When you factored in that the O'Sulivan family was based up by North Bay from the time they emigrated from Ireland until the day Cal's father defected from their hunting heritage. The Campbell name was mentioned a lot in Jacob's journals and in Cal's grandfather's notes. "What do you think, worth a look? You feel like doing a little digging to see if you can add some names to all those blanks in the family tree?" A shy quirk of the lip and she got a "Yeah, sure. Why not?" for her trouble.
Three weeks and a newly confirmed great aunt and uncle later there still wasn't much proof that any kind of a lake monster existed. The couple that had gone missing were not related to the original Campbell's that had been found in the bottom of the lake in 2006 and had been declared dead two weeks into the search. The OPP apparently dealt with a lot of disappearances what with the incredibly rural nature of the area and the vicinity of several provincial parks. Two weeks was all they were willing to put into it. There was absolutely nothing anywhere that could confirm there was any kind of monster in the area.
They were out on the lake, mid-morning, in a canoe because Cal just couldn't let it go. "Maybe it was a really big Muskie or something. They never did find the dog, and those things like to eat anything that moves they can sink their teeth into." She was standing in the canoe, waving around a handheld sonar something-or-other that had a really impressive technical name (which was why she bought it, even though she had no idea how to use it properly). The rocking was making Sam a little seasick, but he was willing to play along.
"It's rare, but there are clearly documented cases of six foot Muskellunge in North America. Nothing in this particular area but that doesn't really mean much. Question is: is this really our line of work?" Cal shifted from foot to foot, a sure sign that she was getting irritated at the holes in their research and of being second-guessed. Sam was rocking too, trying to keep the damned canoe steady so she wouldn't fall into the water.
"Just dotting our 'i's and crossing our 't's here. Okay, so let's say there's a really big Muskie hiding out on the edge of the lake, making its rounds and looking for food. Rover, the loyal family pet, jumps out of the boat because he smells something interesting in the water. The Muskie grabs it and that's it for the dog." But that's where Cal's imagination peters out because the thought of a big-ass fish big enough to bring down an actual person was something she would have preferred to know for sure didn't exist.
"Alright, I can see it. Let's say the Campbell's really love their dog. Folks really relied on their pets to help with hunting and stuff, putting food on the table and keeping the family safe. Maybe Allen jumps in to try and save the dog because Margaret is freaking out. They've got a couple of kids. They can't afford to have any kind of hiccup in the 'providing' area of things." Damn. Thanks Sam, for going exactly where I was hoping never to have to. Especially sitting out on this cold, creepy ass lake with all its fog and stuff.
"So Allen jumps in. The dog's already toast, but the Muskie is thrashing around so they don't know it yet. The guy maybe reaches down a little too close to the muskie's head and looses a hand?"
"Or maybe it goes for his leg, since it's already in the water. Allen goes down. These things can bite off a head in one gulp sometimes. He's got to be bleeding out. So… there's blood spreading out in the water. Margaret's either reacting with on-the-job instinct or she's hysterical because her husband is dying in the water in front of her. She jumps in after him? I'm sorry, but even at six feet, I don't see the thing eating a dog, a grown man and then still being hungry enough to attack the wife." And now that they were talking it out, it was easier to see the logic. The pieces were falling into place.
"Yeah, but, what was it you said when we were looking it up the other day? Don't they live in small schools, the males being really territorial and protective of the females and the young? So, Margaret jumps in to pull Allen back in to the boat only to find out there's more than one of the things that bit him and they are in full feeding frenzy mode." If Dean had been around he'd have made some kind of comment about shark week on the discovery channel. "They wouldn't have had a chance in hell of getting out of the water alive."
The canoe shifted again, but this time Cal hadn't moved. Her arms flew out to steady herself just as Sam leapt forward to help her. It was probably just that nasty cold wind that had picked up, right? "Hey, could you maybe sit down?" The seemingly unprovoked rocking of the boat wasn't enough to freak Sam out, but Cal's rising level of agitation was. "What? Why? If there's something down there I'll be able to see it better from up here than sitting six inches from the water." A hard smack to the sonar device, as if hitting it was going to make it work properly, and she was waving it around some more.
"Look, we've been on the lake since sunrise. I'm starving and you're almost blue from the cold." Sam was about the only person in the universe that could reason with Cal without ruffling her feathers. "But what if we miss the damned thing while we're eating lunch?" The whine was not helping on the patience front. "You really think a half hour in the car to warm up and eat is going to make a difference after sitting out on this lake all morning? You're starting to sound like one of those die hards who spend their whole lives looking for Nessie or Ogopogo " Sam palmed the oars and nodded for her to sit. He was taking them to shore.
"Fine." Even if he had a point, she didn't have to like it. An eye roll did the trick just fine. Unfortunately the eye roll was all it took for her to lose her balance and actually fall out of the boat. Sam couldn't move fast enough to stop it from happening. One minute she was standing there, being obnoxious. The next she was pulling an accidental cartwheel out into the dark, cold waters of the middle of the lake. "CAL!" Her name shouted in surprise. No need to panic. She could swim just fine.
Hard to say just how deep the water was but it had to go down a ways because it took Cal a minute or two to come back up for air. She came bursting out in a vicious spray of water, gasping for air and scrabbling desperately for the edge of the canoe. Sam had a hand out, trying hard to grab some body part so he could pull her in. On her way back downward she got too close to the edge and smacked her head.
Fear didn't even factor in until he watched her eyes roll back into her head and her body go completely limp. She started to slip back under the water as if she were just another part of it. Don't panic. Don't panic. This is Cal, right? She'll be okay. She's always okay. Thank God Sam was fast. Somehow he managed to tangle his fingers into the elbow of her coat. Wet as it was, the material had gone limp which made it easier to find purchase and keep it. Unfortunately it made her a lot heavier too.
One giant heave got her back into the canoe, unfortunately half the lake came with her. An inch and a half's worth of water covered the bottom of the boat and Cal was so waterlogged that any part of her Sam touched, squished noisily. There was no immediate sign of swelling on her forehead where she'd hit the boat so that was good… maybe. Considering her history with head injuries he didn't want to discount the alternative just yet. "Huh, okay. Okay, you're okay but… but I've got to get you off of this lake."
Trying hard not to rock the boat any more than necessary he grabbed around blindly for the handles of the oars. He didn't want to take his eyes of Cal either, just in case. He might have only been joking a minute before about her being blue from the cold but now she really was. The oars weren't actually in the boat anymore though, he'd dropped them when Cal fell and they'd drifted off. The water was fairly calm so at least they hadn't gone far. Still, getting them back meant paddling through the water with his arms. Not even a little pleasant and definitely creepy considering.
All he had to do was get the closest one in hand. Then he could use it to pull the second one closer. Simple, right? Only the closest one wasn't quite close enough to just stretch out an arm and grasp. It was reach, then kersplunk his arm was shoulder deep in the water nearly capsizing the boat. The second time he was more careful; even tried paddling closer with his hands. Three tries later he was half soaked, the boat was dangerously low in the water but he had an oar.
He was so focused on getting the oars, watching Cal breathe and getting them both back to shore that he'd stopped watching the water itself for any signs of danger. The thought never even occurred to him that all the splashing around might attract the attention of some of the underwater wildlife better than all that sitting around they'd done over the course of the morning. He didn't clue in until something poked its head out of the water and bit into the oar he was now using to pull the second paddle toward the boat.
"Oh, oh wow!" If he pulled at the oar it was completely out of reflex. The initial shock of the moment surprised him enough that he wouldn't have thought of it otherwise. Whatever it was must have been just as surprised because it let go right away. When it surfaced again, it was to try and take a bite out of the other oar. Oh, I don't think so! Channeling his inner Dean, instead of thinking he just lifted the oar and thwacked down hard on the end with teeth. It must have been dazed, because it didn't let go right away. Heart pounding in his throat he leaned over just enough to get a better look.
"Huh." And was completely underwhelmed. Cal had been right. They were muskies accidentally disturbed in their feeding territory. Really big ones, sure, but no more dangerous than a pike or any other big ticket fish in the water. Cal would be disappointed but he was pretty sure she'd be relieved too. As much as she pumped up that giant snake slaying in the New York City sewers all that time ago it hadn't been her favorite hunt. She'd never admit to it but the whole thing had freaked her out. He was pretty sure the reason she was so adamant about setting her sights on this so called lake monster was to prove to herself that it either didn't exist or that if it did she could kill it.
The muskie swam away when it realized that its prey was too big and Sam paddled them back to shore pretty quickly after that. All accounts he'd come across had talked about how relatively harmless the fish could be, but there were still one too many references to them being the 'jaws of the north' to want to take any chances. Besides which Cal's track record for injuries on the job leaned toward that fall being the newest reason for a cat scan and a couple of hours in the nearest emergency waiting room.
She came to as he was carrying her down the dirt path leading from the water to the parking lot where they'd left the car. "Lemme down. If I don't start moving I'll never warm up properly." Yeah, sure. Warming up was definitely number one on the list of priorities right now. "You sure you're up to it? You hit your head pretty hard." "Yeah, 'cause that's a first." She snorted. Maybe these concussions of hers were becoming a little too regular if she considered them just another part of life. "I won't lie, Sam, I'm more than a little dizzy and I might just toss whatever's left of breakfast." But she didn't care about that. Cal just wanted to get her feet beneath her and start moving on her own steam again, the better to lose that helpless feeling.
"Then no. I'll set you down when we get to the car." Sam the Immovable had spoken. Given the fact that he was all of twice her size there wasn't much she could do about it. Well, to be fair, there was plenty she could do about it. None of it was fair, though, and that alone was enough to keep her from fighting against this new authoritative side he'd decided to start flexing.
Setting her down so she could lean against the back passenger side door, he opened the front door and ordered her to hold on to it. "You going to be okay for a sec? I need to grab some stuff from the trunk before we get in." Towels, probably, to protect the upholstery. The guy had been far too well conditioned by Dean and his phallic obsession with that Impala if you asked her. Not that anyone was, or anything. But there it was, all the same. Wait, had she said that out loud?
"Yeah. I think so. Don't be long though. My legs are feeling a little too jello-y for my liking." Not a good sign, that she'd even admit to it. She could read the concern in his eyes. It would have scared her if she'd been able to think straight. The guy was fast though. He was gone and then he was back. She barely had the time to blink. Or maybe she did have the time to blink but just couldn't remember she had. That would explain how she came to be sitting next to the car rather than standing, propped up to it.
Pulling her gently to her feet he anchored her where she was by pinning her with his hip and strategically placing both her hands on something she could grab and hold on to. The open door shielded most of her from view, Sam's massive frame hid the rest which was good because he'd started stripping the wet clothes off of her. The parka was a relief to lose. The weight of the big fleece lined plaid shirt she'd stolen from him that morning was also good to shed. When he started pulling her t-shirt over her head though, she started to have a problem. "Don't. I'm cold." She honest-to-God whined. "It's cold because you're all wet. We've got to get you undressed and in something dry." His tone was soothing and although neither of them was sure she understood what he'd said apparently it was enough to put her mind at ease. Cal stopped fighting and just let him do what he had to.
By the time she was down to nothing more than bra, panties and socks it was pretty clear she'd be getting into the car naked. She was soaked to the bone. "Cal." He spoke softly, the sound of her name making her shiver. "Turn around." Eyes closed against the daylight that was making her head feel like it was splitting wide open, she did as she was told, trusting Sam completely. "Hold this." He whispered hoarsely into her hair, putting her hands on something soft. "Hold it up, right here." The soft thing was touching her chin, the other end brushing at her knees teasingly.
She didn't even feel his fingers when he undid the clasp of her bra. It was there and then it was gone. "Good thing I went with the strapless instead of the sports bra eh?" Good sign, her twisted sense of humor was making an appearance. "Yeah. Thanks for that, I guess." His embarrassed laugh was hilarious all things considered. "Can you, uh. Underwear?" He was breathing heavily, but Cal just figured it was from the exertion of pulling her out of the lake. "Sam, I'm having a hard time just standing on my own. Cut the sides so they just fall off." If he coughed it was from the cold. Sure. "Oh okay."
The cool air on her skin was almost enough to knock her off her feet again, but Sam was still there. The sides of towel he'd given her to hold was being pulled around her sides and right back around front to be tucked in so it wouldn't fall off. "Turn around again, Cal." He pulled a terry cloth sleeve up one arm and the other. A hood came up to cover her wet hair and then she was being lifted off the ground again, placed carefully on the seat with her legs hanging out of the car. Leaning her cheek on the back of the seat she watched disjointedly as Sam pulled off her socks, towel dried her feet and put a pair of his own wool socks on her. They were so big that they almost met the edge of the towel at her knees. "How's the head?" He asked as he strapped the seatbelt around her. "Okay, I think. I'm a little dazed and really cold. Should I… would a CAT scan be a waste of time, d'you think?"
"Well I think it's a good sign you're even able to worry about it. Let's get you back to the hotel and warmed up, make our decision from there. Okay?" It wasn't even a nod. She just sort of rolled her head to one side a little while he tucked a blanket all around her. "Good?" She nodded yes and fell asleep to the sound of the engine purring quietly around them as Sam drove the back roads.
There might have been a short hospital trip, or maybe Cal had dreamt it. Lord only knew there had been enough of them over the years that it was possible. The next time she was fully conscious again, though, they were back at the hotel. She was tucked in, hair dry and brushed smooth, blankets up around her cheeks and feeling toasty warm. Sam was sitting at the little table by the window, laptop open in front of him casting an artificial glow on the top of his sleeping head. He was still wearing the same clothes and they still looked damp. He would take care of her at his own expense, wouldn't he?
There was just one thing to do about that now, wasn't there?
Getting up wasn't easy. She was still a little dizzy and it was hard to forsake the warmth of the sheets for the cooler air in the room. The giant t-shirt he'd dressed her in went a long way to keeping her warm though so she forged ahead anyway.
The smell of the coffee brewing was what roused Sam. Groggy, lids at half mast, he lifted his face off his crossed arms looking blearily around for the source of what woke him. "Wha-?" Cal was there with towels. "You're ridiculous, you know that?" Silly chiding as she pulled at the hem of his shirt. He tried to stop her but she was determined. "What are you talking about?" The words were muffled by the shirt now covering his face as he gave in, tugging it over his head for her. "So, you pull a girl out of a lake. You get her out of her wet clothes, ever the gentleman, and play knight in shining armor by taking care of her and yet you forget to take care of your own self. I'm supposed to be okay with that am I?" He didn't have an answer for her. Then again, maybe he just couldn't do two things at once. Toweling off whatever dampness still clung to his skin and hair seemed to be demanding quite a bit of his attention.
"So…" He stilled her hands as her fingers found his belt buckle. "You're okay?" Those impossibly soft brown eyes searched her face for any sign that she might still be in trouble. A nod for his trouble and she shook him off to continue with what she was doing. "Cal, I don't know what you remember but…" his breath caught as she unzipped his fly and gestured for him to either get up or take his pants off himself. "I know. I fell into the lake and hit my head coming back up out of the water." Her long lashed, big blue eyes had begun to travel, taking stock of what she saw.
Sam apparently hadn't come out unscathed either. He had a couple of bruises and what looked like mild frostbit on his right arm. He hissed as she gently poked and prodded at the deep red of his skin. "The CAT scan came back okay so they felt reasonably comfortable sending you home, but you've been in and out it for hours now." The between-the-lines message here being something along the lines of you should be back in bed. "You didn't happen to get them to look at this frostbite while we were at the hospital, did you? Clearly not, or you'd have some bandages and salve going on."
"They looked at it, gave me some cream or something. I was going to take care of it after…" He looked over at the messed up bed, breath catching in his throat before he thought better of it and looked back at her. "I guess I fell asleep instead." He'd been worried. She'd put him through hell. Does the guy complain or give her a hard time about not doing what the doctor said she should? Nope. He tries to make excuses and apologizes for not having enough left over to take care of himself.
"Where's the cream?" Handing him the clothes she'd dug out from his bag she turned to give him some semblance of privacy. "I think I left it on the bathroom counter." He grunted, apparently having a hard time with his own pants. Bingo! There was the tube, right next to the toothbrushes and one of her elastics. When she turned back toward him he was already in the sweats she'd handed him.
"So it's just the frostbite on the arms?" Didn't hurt to check. "Yeah. It's really not as bad as it looks." "Tell you what, doc Winchester, you let me do for you what the label on this tube says you should have done hours ago. I'll let you badger me into going back to bed. Sound like a plan?" Well the good news was that she was thinking straight again, even if the world was still a little fuzzy around the edges. T'sokay. It'll fade and life'll go back to normal again. The bad news was that she was back to being just as bossy as ever. This was pretty much okay too, though, because there was give to her take when she was on Sam's butt to do things. Her edges softened.
"Fine. I guess that's fair." He was probably still too tired to argue. Or maybe he saw that it was wiser to let her have this one if it meant she'd do what was necessary to feel better without the usual hassle this time. Whatever the case Sam closed his eyes and let Cal salve and bandage his little bit of minor frostbite to her heart's content.
She didn't argue with him when he got up and pulled on the ratty old Henley she'd handed him. (The same one she kept stealing from his bag because it was so soft and warm.) She didn't fight him when he ushered her back to the bed and pulled the covers back for her. "Just a queen this time?" She asked groggily, glancing around the room as she curled up. "Yeah, some kind of comic-con or something in town this week. This is all they had left." Well, no complaints there. "T'sokay. Considering what kind of shape we're in, at least in the same bed we've got better chances of waking each other up if something happens during the night."
"Yeah well." Sam was sort of hoping nothing would happen during the night except for a good night's sleep. "You scared the hell out of me, you know." He mumbled in a conversationally, sleepy sort of way, already hogging two thirds of the bed with his massive frame. "Not when you smacked your head so much. God knows you've done that enough times, job doesn't feel done unless you're limping or nursing a bump of some sort." She snorted and he smiled at the ceiling. "Anyway, one minute you were leaning up against the car, the next you were gone. I had eyes on you the whole time I was digging through the trunk. That's why you've got my socks and shirt on. It would have taken longer to dig through your stuff. I'd have had to look at what I was putting my hands on. My bag, well I can dig through it blind folded and still come out with my only clean pair of socks. When you just vanished I panicked. Thought for sure that damned fish had crawled up from the lake to try and drag us back in."
Hold on, what fish? Good question. Ask Sam that, Cal. Right. "What fish?" What had she missed out on that lake? "Big ass muskie, like this big, tried to eat our oars after I pulled you out of the lake. Huge. Big teeth. Scary." Ah, well that explained a lot, though Cal wouldn't be able to properly sort it out until the room stopped spinning. Also, she ought to let a guy sleep. He'd downgraded from actual conversation to using single words. She'd put the guy through enough already, no reason to add sleep deprivation to the list. "A muskie eh?" Well, maybe when they were feeling a bit better they could go out and fish the damned thing out of the lake so it wouldn't be able to hurt anyone else. Mm, campfire fish. "Mmhm." No more words from Sam, just grunts. Well, he was a Winchester after all.
So Cal curled up into a ball on her side, her usual preferred way to fall asleep, and left Sam to his dreams. As her eyes drifted shut she felt him shift beside her. One big arm wrapped itself around her waist and the rest of him melted against her back. He'd tucked her in against him like a kid with a teddy bear, chin resting just above the top of her head. They'd never done anything like cuddling before but it felt as natural as breathing so Cal just went with it.
Thinking he was already asleep she took his hand in hers and tucked it against her neck, stopping past her lips briefly on the way. A quick kiss to the back of his hand and a whispered 'thank you' as she drifted off to sleep. Sam smiled into her hair, awake enough to have felt it all, and pressed his mouth to her temple as softly as possible. Was satisfied to feel her press up against him to share his warmth as her breath slowed, became deep and even as she slipped off to Neverland.
Funny how the most chaste of kisses, to the hand or temple, can sometimes hold the deepest meaning.
Sometimes Blessings Come In Awkward Packaging
They could have parted ways countless times over the years. Instead they chose to continue working together not just to stave off the loneliness but because it was fun. Somewhere along the line they'd slipped under each other's skins and now they couldn't be rid of each other. Not that they wanted to be.
The double beds went the way of the dinosaurs after the muskie incident, and life went on as they felt out the natural progression of things. Cal, who was normally all flash and boisterousness, kept whatever they had quiet. It wasn't a secret by any means, but it was their private life to share. At first it had been to spare feelings. There had been Fran to consider, and Dean regardless of what an ass he'd been. Mostly it was just that Sam and Cal were private people by nature. Sam openly so and Cal's noisy exterior always just a redirection from the things she preferred to keep to herself. They were well matched.
For whatever reason Cal was tamer when she was with Sam, her edges softened and that tough outer shell wasn't quite so sharp and biting. Like she didn't need that wall so much anymore. Sam, for his part, had managed to make peace with who he was. There was much less of an awkwardness about him, like he'd finally grown into that massive frame of his and the name that had come with it. He wore his legacy quietly and with grace, without making a big deal of it.
Those who were close to them noticed the change. Fran made a comment or two about Cal losing her edge every time she stepped foot in Chez Henri's, teasing her. There was a lot less raucous showing off at the pool tables, low cut shirts and barely-there skirts almost a thing of the past. Like suddenly the need to distract everyone from herself wasn't there anymore. She'd begun to let others do things for her too, without taking it as a sign that she wasn't doing enough or able to take care of herself. Sam was easier to laugh and just let loose. He'd gone from broody and quiet to relaxed and easy, quick to crack a joke just to squeeze the smile out of a person. It had been a gradual change, but because they came by to visit so infrequently most folks saw it as an overnight thing.
It was all Sam's fault and they both knew it. From silently handing her the gravol and a glass of water during a particularly terrible bout of the flu to pulling the blankets back up over her shoulders when she tossed and turned and kept him awake at night. He'd taken to watching over her. Who knew? Maybe that's what had helped him find that calm. Not just being able to take care of someone other than himself or Dean, but that such a strong woman who was clearly capable of taking care of herself would allow him to do those little things for her without hesitation or argument. She'd fought Dean all the way and yet with Sam there had been nothing but acceptance and a smile that lit up her eyes.
Then one day, on one of those rare occasions when everyone was finally in the same place at the same time, Dean made the most surprising comment. It was a big to-do, some kind of county fair type thing that Maggie and Jason had convinced everyone to come up for. Bobby was manning the barbecues with Fran and her husband. Cal was teaching Maggie how to 'properly' throw darts and Jason how to shoot to win at the games tables. Sam and Dean were sitting on the hood of the Impala, just like they used to, sipping at a couple of beers just watching the world go by.
Dean knocked elbows with his brother to get his attention and tilted his chin in Cal's direction. "You two, uh, seem content." It wasn't derogatory, more of a testing of the waters. Like he was trying to see how much could he say without going too far or walking them into an unwanted chick flick moment. "Can't really speak for Cal, but yeah I guess I am." Sam's eyes met Cal's from where he sat and they smiled at each other looking for all the world like they were sharing an inside joke without having to even say the words.
"She sure is. I've never seen her so relaxed. Guard down and all, y'know?" Dean didn't sound surprised really. He was relieved. Like all he'd wanted for her was to find what she now had. This was not typical Dean behavior. Sam wasn't really all that sure how to take it. "Yeah." Safest route was to agree then wait and see where his brother was going with this.
Dean cleared his throat, as if readying himself to drop a bomb and suddenly Sam is wondering if the he was about to find out the world was going to end, again. But what comes out of his brother's mouth is this: "You guys, you sort of remind me of mom and dad… you know… back before all the demons, hunting and end of the world stuff." And that was about as much of a blessing as Dean would ever have to offer. Cal would always be the one shot at normal that he'd had to walk away from. He'd miss it but he'd never regret the decision. Nor would he begrudge either of them what they found in each other.
"Ha! Yeah well, we'll never be the Brady's." An understatement and a half.
"Well, maybe not." A hoarse laugh coughed through a swig of the bottle in his hand, but Dean muddled through it with unnatural grace and style. "But I couldn't have pictured things working out any better than they have. You look good on each other Sammy." And that was about as much of a moment as Dean could stand. A quick brotherly pat on the shoulder and he was sauntering off to harass Fran into letting him burn his own burger. Maybe if I do it myself you'll listen to that husband of yours and sit your pregnant butt down for a sec to take a break.
Sam wasn't all that sure where things were going with Cal and the strange, if comfortable, little life they'd settled into. They didn't think in terms of marriage, children and all those steps people take along the road of life. Mostly because they'd made a habit of just driving, choosing to deal with whatever popped up on the side of the road as it came at them. He wasn't little Sammy with all those dreams of Stanford and law school. The guy who dreamed of a house, a wife, two and a half kids and a loyal family pet didn't exist anymore. The child had grown up and faced reality only to realize that the life he'd dreamed of wasn't suited to him. Cal was, though, and now the only thing he hoped for was that he'd continue to be smart enough not to screw that up. He didn't need anything else.