1 Degree
Summary
Dean goes to Palo Alto during his and Sam's separation in hopes of seeing his younger brother…but he doesn't know how close he really comes.
It was amazing, Dean Winchester thought, how every time he ended up in Palo Alto, California, it was like his brother didn't exist.
He went to fill the void his younger brother Sam had left when he left home three years ago to go to college. Somewhere inside, he secretly hoped that he would see Sam somewhere around, catch a glimpse of him, somewhere, anywhere…
But Dean had been there probably fifteen to twenty times since his brother left – yet not once had he ever seen him or any evidence to suggest that he was or ever had been in Palo Alto. He didn't mention Sam's name often, but when or if he did, no one he talked to had ever heard of him.
In some ways, seeing Sam again was Dean's greatest wish. But a cold, slimy, and surprisingly unfamiliar sensation of fear always curled up inside him whenever he thought of coming face to face with his younger brother. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how long he thought, whenever he asked himself, "What would I say?" he could not come up with a thing.
He'd walked the streets of Palo Alto before, but not enough to recall where to go or where anything was. He mostly just wandered aimlessly around during his stays, skulking around the college campus, ever unsure of whether he wanted to see Sam or not.
Today Dean was on a quiet street. It was a nice day outside, but everything and everyone seemed to be sleepy and tranquil. It was almost unnerving him.
A couple walked by, holding hands and walking close together. Dean watched them out of the corner of his eye. Of course, Sam would choose a place like this to live. The place like a freaking fairy tale.
He ducked into a crosswalk, hoping it would take him to a busier street where things weren't quite so Stepford, but he only ended up in a neighbourhood that was just as silent. He stopped, irritated, and listened. He could hear the sound of fairly heavy traffic coming from somewhere. He started off in that direction, tired of everything being so perfect and quiet.
He found himself in the centre of town, and he felt a bit better, surrounded by noise and busyness. He sighed. What was he doing here?
His cell phone rang in his pocket. INCOMING CALL: JOHN W., the message on the display screen read. He slipped it back in his pocket. It could go to voicemail. He didn't want to go back. Not just yet.
He realized he was standing in front of a library. The tall brick building loomed above him, almost taunting him. He hesitated, then mounted the steps and went inside. He didn't know why. He'd never shared Sam's fascination with anything scholarly, always blowing off his homework as a kid and even now only cracking open a book when he needed to.
He immediately felt out of place in the quiet, stuffy building, and berated himself for going in it in the first place. He turned around to leave.
Somewhere behind him, there was a huge thudding noise and a high-pitched cry. Without even thinking, Dean spun around and ran towards the source of the noise.
A thin blonde girl was lying on the library floor, about six books scattered around her. She was laughing so hard her entire body was shaking.
"Are you all right?" Dean asked, kneeling down. She was still giggling. Either she was fine and thought it was completely hilarious, he reasoned, or she had hit her head a bit too hard.
"Yeah," she said, sitting herself up, "I'm fine. I'm just a huge klutz, that's all." She started to laugh again.
"Jesus Christ. Didn't you already do that once this week?" A girl Dean assumed was the library assistant poked her head around a shelf.
"No," the blonde protested. "I didn't." She paused. "It was last week." She started to reach for the books she'd dropped. Dean reached for a few to help her.
"Seriously, are you all right?" The library assistant stepped out from behind the shelf, her arms full of books. "Because I've kind of got my hands full here…"
"I'm okay," she called back. Then she blushed and looked around, remembering she was in a library. "Oops." She turned back to Dean. "Thanks. God, I can't believe how clumsy I am."
He tucked four books under his left arm and held out his right one to help her up. "You sure you're okay?"
"Oh, yeah," she said, allowing him to pull her to her feet. "Believe me, I do it all the time. My boyfriend keeps threatening to buy me knee and elbow pads for my birthday."
"Nice boyfriend," Dean commented, before he could stop himself.
She didn't take offence to it, though. "He just doesn't want me to get hurt, that's all."
He nodded. "Yeah. Of course."
She pushed a piece of blonde hair out of her eyes and made her way over to a table in the corner. Still holding her books, Dean followed her.
She sat down at the table and smiled up at him. He put her books down, too. "I don't think I know you," she said. "You don't go to school here, do you?"
He shook his head. "Oh, God, no. I'm just…in town. My brother lives here."
"Oh," she said thoughtfully, nodding her head. "What's his name? Maybe I know him."
Dena hesitated. What if she did know him? What then?
"You probably don't," he said. There. Done. You blew your chances. Again. "He's pretty antisocial."
She didn't answer for a moment, simply looked at him. "All right. Whatever you say."
He smiled apologetically, but he didn't know what else to say.
She gestured towards another seat at the table. "You can sit down if you want," she said. "I'm not doing anything important." After a moment, she added, "Sorry I screwed up your library time."
"Oh, God," he said. "Don't worry about it. Honestly, it was the most exciting thing that happened to me all day."
"Well," she said, glancing at her watch, "the day is still young. It's only 12:30."
"Are you kidding me?" Dean groaned. "It feels like it should be four o'clock in the afternoon."
"Oh, I know how that feels," she agreed.
Dean considered sitting down. She was rearranging her many books, waiting for him to make a decision. She was pretty. And friendly. And interesting.
In his pocket, his phone rang. To his surprise, the girl's cell rang, too.
Dean let his ring, knowing it was his father. She answered hers, though. "Hello?" A smile came onto her face. "Oh, hey, babe."
Pretty. Friendly. Interesting. And, oh yeah, taken.
He knew it was time to go. "It was nice meeting you," he said quietly. She mouthed back, "You too," and waved.
As he turned to leave, he heard her say into the phone, "Hang on a sec." Then, she called after him, "Wait. You never said your name."
He turned back and smiled. "That's okay. I'm leaving town today anyway." He turned away and left the library.
He sighed, not knowing whether to feel relieved or sad. Time to go back to real life. At least, he thought, his real life. He pulled out his phone and called his dad. Bye, Sam. It was nice not seeing you. Not.
She made her way back to her apartment, where she knew her boyfriend was waiting for her. She smiled when she saw the familiar numbers on the door.
"You home?" she called, opening the door, and stepping in.
"Yeah," she heard him call back. Probably from the kitchen. The way that boy ate…
She stopped in the doorway. Sure enough, there he was, his butt sticking out of the fridge. "That's a really flattering view," she remarked jokingly. He pulled his head out and stood up.
"Hey," he said, kicking the fridge closed behind him and walking over to her. She could've melted in his arms, she thought, as he leaned down to kiss her.
"I love you," she whispered.
"I love you more," he whispered back.
Nice boyfriend. She could still hear that guy's voice in her head. "Nice" didn't even seem to start to describe him.
"We are not getting into that argument," she said in a mock scolding voice.
He kissed her again.
She entwined her fingers with his as he pulled away. "God, what would I do without you?"
He grinned back at her.
"I fell at the library again today," she said with a giggle. "Can you believe it?"
He rolled his eyes. "Well. I was going to ask you whether anything exciting happened to you today, but never mind."
"Yeah. Then I ended up talking to this weird guy for a bit."
"Mmm hmm?"
"Yeah. And then some weirdo named Sam called."
"Really? A weirdo named Sam? How odd. You know," he said, pulling her close, "if you're feeling threatened by this…Sam…maybe I can…protect you…"
She couldn't help but laugh. I think you're wrong, Sam Winchester, she thought. I love you more.
The End