One shot for now

Jack stood silently by the campfire, trying to keep his eyes on the flames. The atmosphere in the camp was cheerful, thanks to their victory today. They had managed to save nine people from the death patrol of the angels. Those people, two of them small children, would have been brutally executed. Jack had seen countless of horrible things in this world, but it didn't get any easier. He wanted to help these people. Protect them.

Especially one of them. Once again he tried his best not to stare at her, but he couldn't help it. He could have spent hours looking at her. It didn't really make any sense to him. He didn't feel the need to stare at anyone else; he knew that it was rude. Why couldn't he stop staring at her? She was standing few feet away, talking with Mary.

Jack would have wanted to join them, but he didn't. He was afraid that he would once again say something foolish. Something that would make her to think that he was strange. Why couldn't he talk to her like he talked to everyone else? Suddenly she noticed him looking at her and smiled at him. He looked away as quickly as he could. Why? Why did she make him so nervous?

He had felt the same way ever since they had met. He had been patrolling in the woods and heard her screams. She had traveled a long way, hoping to find shelter. The men who had tried to hurt her hadn't been angels. No, they had been humans. He had saved her from those men and brought her to the camp with him. Something had changed after that. He couldn't really understand it.

Why did she have this kind of effect on him? Her touch sent shivers up his spine, her smile made him feel strangely warm, her habit of biting her lower lip made him feel… He wasn't sure how it made him feel. The worst part was the dreams. Thankfully he didn't require very much sleep, but when he did fall asleep, he often dreamt of her. In those dreams, she usually didn't have very much clothes on.

Just the thought was embarrassing, what was wrong with him? He would have wanted to ask someone for some kind of advice, but who could he possibly talk to about something like this? Certainly not Mary. Maybe Sam or Dean, if they would have been here. Unfortunately they weren't. He would have to figure this out by himself.

"You did good today," Bobby's voice suddenly said.

Jack startled a little, he hadn't heard Bobby coming.

"Thank you."

"Hmm, it wasn't a compliment, just the truth. You've helped us a lot and I appreciate that."

"Thank you," Jack repeated, unsure of what to say.

"So," Bobby continued after a moment of silence. "She's a pretty girl."

"What?" Jack gasped.

Bobby rolled his eyes.

"I ain't blind, boy. Pearl. I've seen how you've looked at her."

"No, no, I haven't…"

"As I said, she's a pretty girl. A nice girl. You be nice too."

"Of course, I just…"

"What?" Bobby asked when Jack didn't continue.

"I… She makes me feel…strange."

Bobby frowned.

"Strange how?"

Jack lowered his head.

"I…I'm not sure. I can't act normally with her, she makes me nervous. And… I've had these strange dreams about her." Jack paused and took a deep breath before looking at Bobby. "What's wrong with me?"

The corners of Bobby's mouth were twitching.

"Well, boy… I would say that you have a crush on her."

Jack a frowned.

"A what?"

"You like her."

"Yes, I like many people, but they don't make me feel like this."

"For the love of… You're attracted to her."

Jack considered his words for a moment.

"Yes, I do like watching her."

"Right… You haven't been out much, have you, son?"

"No, I suppose not," Jack muttered. "What… What should I do?"

"Talking to her would probably be a good place to start."

"Alright. What should I talk about?"

"How would I know, do I look like Dr. Phil to you?"

"I don't know. What does he look like?"

"Never mind," Bobby huffed. "Just be polite and respectful. And listen to her. According to my experience, most women appreciate that."

"Listen… Yes, I can do that."

Bobby patted Jack's shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Good luck, son."

Jack swallowed when he saw that Pearl was by herself, Mary had just left. Alright, he could do this…

"Pearl," he greeted her.

"Hi, Jack," she replied smiling. "Good work today."

"Thank you." He paused and cleared his throat. "So… I just wanted to let you know that I would like to listen to you."

Her eyes widened.

"Listen to me?"

"Yes, if there's anything you would like to talk about, I would like to listen."

She smiled.

"You're sweet. A little weird, but sweet."

"I'm sorry, I…"

"Don't be," she cut in. "I like weird."

"You do?"

"Yeah."

His heart was beating like a drum when she took his hand and entwined her fingers with his. They stood there for a while, looking at the flames. Eventually his heartbeat slowed down and he started to relax. Feeling her there, next to him, felt very natural. He never wanted to let her go.