Author's note: Hello, everybody. Now, before you start yelling at me, I swear, I haven't abandoned Lost In Paradise. I know it's been a month, but school's been a mess and I've hit a rather unfortunate wall of writer's block on that story. I know where I want it to go, and we're getting close to the end, but I'm just not quite sure how to get there. Please be patient with me, I am trying.

In the meantime, I'm trying my hand at Supernatural. I just barely got around to watching the show, and this is the first fic I've written for SPN, so please, no flames. I would love any feedback you have to make it better, though.

Keep in mind that this is completely AU. I know it doesn't technically make any sense or even follow all of the laws of the show, but I was reading this ghost story, and the idea for this fic popped into my head, and I just couldn't help myself. All it is is a quick little two-shot. Please enjoy!

Disclaimer: Supernatural is not mine

Chapter 1: Do You Believe

Here they were again. Another move, another town, another hunt.

Seventeen-year-old Dean Winchester wasn't particularly happy to be there. Claryville was a small town, and small towns just weren't his thing. People were always either too friendly, which he found annoying, or too hostile, which just pissed him off. And they all knew each other already, had since birth, so they were all set in their cliques. Not to mention every chick worth looking at already had a boyfriend.

City kids did it right. Welcoming enough, but not in a way that made Dean wonder if they were all what his father had come here to hunt. And there was always a girl or two whose attention he could catch.

All-in-all, in Dean's opinion, small towns sucked.

There was one thing, though, that made Claryville more interesting than all the other little places Dean had visited. When Dean's father, John, was a teenager, he'd had cousins who'd lived there, so he'd come visit. He knew the town and some of the people in it well. At least Dean wasn't a completely random stranger here. He was still a stranger, still a little random, but not completely, which was something. And something was better than nothing.

Dean's little brother, Sam, was happy. He liked small towns better than cities. He had a thing for that nine-to-five, white picket fence feel that they had, and he loved it when the people were so welcoming. He was still so trusting, and while Dean cherished that about his little brother, it also terrified him. A little suspicion was a good thing. Dean knew that, had since he was four.

But then he forgot. The minute he saw Jamie.

XxXxX

It was a pretty average night. Dean and Sam had been living in a little rented house for about a month now, their father rarely there. This hunt was trickier than he thought it would be, and he didn't want Dean and Sam involved in it. Sam was at home right then, doing his homework. Dean had taken the Impala and gone to see a movie.

It was raining hard by the time Dean was on his way home. He didn't mind. He liked rain. It provided good cover for any sounds you might make and made it harder to see you. What else could a guy want out of life?

Then he saw her, and realized there was a whole lot more.

He slammed on the breaks next to her. She was a slight little brunette in a sparkling, deep purple tank top and jeans. She was just sitting on a bench outside the library in the pouring rain, her glossy black heels next to her instead of on her feet. There was something ethereal, almost otherworldly, about her.

Dean had seen a lot of weird things - you didn't grow up a hunter and not see weird things - but this was one of the few things that actually struck him as truly strange.

Not knowing what else to do, he rolled down the window and called to her. "Hey! You need a ride?"

She stared, and for a second, Dean was scared he'd done something wrong. For some reason, he wanted this girl to like him. But then she smiled, a smile that lit up her whole face, jumped up, grabbed her shoes, and dashed barefoot over to the passenger side.

Yep. Dean had done the right thing.

Once she'd shut the door, Dean slipped off his jacket and draped it around her soaked shoulders. She just looked so cold, and he couldn't stand it. The jacket nearly swallowed her, but at least she'd be warm.

The girl smiled even more brightly, sliding her arms into the sleeves and clutching the jacket close. "Thank you."

"Anytime." She was even cuter up close. Dean could see the color of her eyes now, light blue, and the faint smattering of freckles across her cheeks and the bridge of her nose, just like his own.

Needing something to say before he stared to long and made her uncomfortable, Dean said, "I'm Dean. Dean Winchester."

"Jamie. Jamie Lewis."

"Well, where to, Jamie?"

"Home, I guess."

"Y'know, an address would be useful."

"I'll just tell you where to turn. I don't even remember my address anyway. I've never had to tell anyone what it is."

That brought Dean crashing back to Earth. Of course. Small towns. Jamie probably already had a boyfriend. Hell, she was probably already engaged. "Right, sorry. Let's go." He started the car and continued down the road.

Jamie turned to look at him sharply, noticing the change in his tone. "Are you okay?"

Dean wished she wouldn't be concerned. It made her seem even prettier and even more like a porcelain doll than before.

"I'm fine." he said, fighting to keep his voice neutral. "Just think I oughta get you home quick before your boyfriend sees us and gets mad." This was Dean's favorite way to find out if someone was single or not. It compliments them, because it made it seem like he couldn't imagine a girl like that not being taken already. Got him started off in a good place.

Though, to be fair, he didn't feel like he was in a good place right now. He didn't like the idea of Jamie already having a boyfriend. He'd just have to act like he didn't care.

Unfortunately - or fortunately, depending on how you wanted to look at it - Jamie saw right through him. Her smile was kind as she said, "I don't have a boyfriend. I haven't for a long time."

If Dean had thought about it, he would have realized that was a weird way for a teenage girl to talk, but he was too busy being happy that Jamie didn't have a boyfriend to notice. He smiled and glanced sideways at her. "Am I supposed to take that as an invitation?"

Jamie smiled at him sweetly again. She seemed to do that a lot. "We'll see. Turn left."

Dean nodded slowly, pulling onto the next street. The whole situation was better than he'd thought it was a minute ago, and that was good enough for him, at least right now.

"So," Jamie said, "I haven't ever seen you before. Are you new, or just visiting someone?"

Another reason Dean preferred city kids: they weren't so damn nosey, and didn't know everyone around them, so they didn't notice if you hadn't ever been around before. But for some reason, with Jamie, he didn't mind. "We're new, I guess. But we probably won't be here very long."

"Why not?" Jamie actually sounded genuinely sad at the idea he'd be gone soon.

Dean didn't know why he felt like answering her honestly. There was just something about her. "We're never anywhere very long. We skip from place-to-place a lot."

"It's this little blue house right here."

Dean pulled up to the curb and Jamie got out. Before he was even sure what he was doing, he said, "D'you wanna go out Friday night?"

Jamie paused, startled, then smiled. "I'd love to. I'll meet you at the bench where you picked me up at seven."

She started to pull off Dean's jacket, but he put a hand on her arm to stop her. "Keep it. It looks better on you than it does on me anyhow."

With another smile, she leaned in and quickly kissed Dean's cheek, then turned and ran in the house, waving goodbye as she went.

XxXxX

Dean waited nervously on the bench outside the library for Jamie. It was seven, Friday, but there was no sign of her yet. Was she even coming? He wouldn't blame her if she didn't. But she'd seemed to genuinely like him, and he couldn't help hoping she'd come all the same.

The only problem with it all was that Dean couldn't help feeling incredibly selfish. Sure, he'd been with plenty of girls, but most of them had been at least halfway okay with Dean disappearing mysteriously after a few weeks of hot and heavy romance. Jamie didn't seem like the kind of girl who would be okay with it. She seemed like a strictly serious, long term relationship type, the type that would be hurt by someone dating as casually as Dean usually did and then leaving. But Dean liked her enough that he was here anyway. And that was exactly why he felt selfish.

"Hi, Dean." Jamie almost seemed to just appear in front of him. She was still wearing his jacket.

Dean felt another pang of guilt. Telling a girl she could keep your jacket was practically asking her to go steady, and her wearing it instead of her own was a yes

Oh well. There was no going back. Dean stood up. "Hi, Jamie."

XxXxX

Dean snuck into the bedroom, careful not to wake Sam, and flopped down on the bed. This was the first time he had been so happy with a date that hadn't ended in sex.

All of his previous relationships had been so emotionless that he hadn't really be aware that there was such a thing as feeling something for the chick that wasn't a result of his sex drive. But there was, and it was a nice thing to find out. He'd always felt so shallow before, like there should be a deeper meaning to all this stuff, and now he knew that there was.

Though, to be fair, Jamie seemed to just bring a deeper meaning to everything, no matter what was going on.

Oh well. Whatever the reason, Dean liked this feeling, and he was going to sit here and enjoy it for a while…

Sam stirred and turned his face in Dean's direction. He moaned quietly, breathing a little harder. His nightmares. Unconsciously, Sam reached his hand out towards Dean's bed. "Dean." he mumbled.

Resigned to spending another night with his arm lifted, Dean reached out and gently grabbed his little brother's hand.

Sam immediately relaxed, even smiled a little, some part of him always reassured by Dean, even asleep.

Dean sighed and closed his eyes. Basically being a parent was hard.

XxXxX

Dean was woken up the next morning by the sound of his father clattering around in the kitchen. He was glad John was home. Even though Sam was still mostly Dean's responsibility, things seemed different. Better.

Safer.

Dean glanced over at Sam. His brother was still sleeping, his fingers entwined with Dean's. How they managed to keep their hands locked tight when they were asleep was something Dean had never been able to puzzle out, so he'd quit trying. He knew Sam and him were closer than most brothers. He chalked it up to that.

The bedroom door opened and John Winchester stepped in. Dean immediately sat up, paying complete attention. Like a good little soldier.

"Dean," John said, with a hint of disapproval in his voice that never seemed to leave, "What're you boys still doing in bed? Shouldn't you be getting Sam ready for school?"

"It's Saturday." Dean said.

John nodded towards Sam and Dean's clasped hands. "And isn't he getting a little too old for that?"

"He was-"

"Doesn't matter, Dean. I have to go soon, but I've got to clean the guns first. Get out here and help so it won't take so long."

Dean gently disentangled his and Sam's hands and followed John out.

They'd been working on the guns for a good ten minutes before John spoke. "You look kinda strange, Dean. Is everything okay?"

Dean smiled. He was in a better mood than he'd been in for months. Figures his father would notice something different. "Yeah, I'm great."

John obviously found Dean's smile unnerving, which just made Dean smile more. It was a great day to be alive. John stared at Dean for another second, then experimentally said, "Christo."

Dean started laughing. "I'm not possessed." Had he really been that unhappy lately?

An understanding look came over John's face. "A girl. Pretty?"

Dean nodded.

"Good in bed?"

"We actually haven't done that yet."

"Not that I'm not happy about that, but what's got you smiling if you haven't done that yet?"

"I dunno. There's just… somethin' about her." Dean glanced back up at John and paused. He actually looked scared

"Dean…" John sounded like he knew Dean wasn't gonna be a fan of what was about to come out of his mouth. "Maybe you shouldn't see her again."

XxXxX

Dean didn't listen to what his father said. For nine months, the longest they'd ever stayed in one place - John was having a lot of trouble with this hunt - Dean spent every minute he wasn't helping his dad or taking care of Sam with Jamie. He never had to go to her house to find her, she always found him. It was like all he had to do was start wondering where he could find her and there she would be. Always clutching Dean's jacket around her like it was the most precious thing ever created. Always looking at Dean like he was God's gift to this world.

And Dean found himself looking at her the same way. He'd never felt like this before, but he knew what it was. He was hopelessly, desperately, in love.

XxXxX

It was the middle of the night. Dean had snuck out of the house to be with Jamie. It was Dean's 18th birthday, and she'd said the best present she could think of was to show him the constellations, something he'd never paid a particularly large amount of attention to. So now they were lying barefoot and cuddled together on the side of the hill just outside of town, happy and content despite the freezing January air. Dean absently stroked Jamie's hair with one hand and held her with the other.

"Happy 18th birthday, Dean." she whispered.

"Thanks, Jamie." He couldn't remember ever feeling so happy in his life.

"Dean," Jamie said softly, "can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"You've told me about Sam, and you've told me about your father, but what happened to your mother?"

Dean tensed. "She was killed when I was four." he said shortly.

"What happened?"

Dean was ready to feed her the lie his father had taught him from day one, the lie he and Sam had told so many people, but for some reason, he didn't have it in himself to lie to Jamie.

"Do you believe in the supernatural?"

XxXxX

When Dean got home that night, he felt like he was walking on air. Jamie had believe him without question, hadn't laughed at him or called him insane. She'd shown him nothing but love and support, something he wasn't all that used to. He was used to giving it, not getting it. He was starting to think he wanted to spend the rest of his life with this girl.

He opened the front door to find John packing their belongings. He'd seen this too many times not to know what it meant. He went cold all over with panic.

"Dean," his father said, barely glancing up at him. "Get your stuff packed. We're leaving first thing in the morning: this hunt's taken too damn long." He didn't seem to notice or care that his oldest son was wandering home at three o'clock in the morning.

"No."

The word, and the meaning behind it, was so against everything Dean had ever said or done when it came to his father that for a second, he was shocked that it'd actually come out of his mouth.

John was just as surprised, turning slowly to face his son. "What did you say?"

Dean gathered what little courage he felt he had and stood his ground. "I said no. I'm staying."

"You can't just-"

"I'm eighteen; I can do what I want."

"You're not eighteen yet. Your birthday's not until…" John trailed off, a look of horror coming over his face. "Your birthday was today?"

Dean glanced at the clock. "Technically yesterday, since midnight happened a few hours ago."

John paused for a second, then said very cautiously, "Dean, I'm sorry I forgot your birthday. You've made your point. We'll get a beer or something as soon as we're out of here. Now will you please go pack?"

Dean shook his head. "This isn't just about you forgetting my birthday. It's not like it's the first time. I'm staying here."

Anger, fear, and pain all flashed across John's face before he arranged it into a calm mask. "Then why, Dean?"

Dean bit his lip for a second. He'd kept his relationship with Jamie a complete secret from both his father and Sam, something he was actually kind of proud of. But it wasn't like he could just waltz off without any explanation. "Jamie. I'm in love with Jamie."

John was completely nonplussed. "Jamie? Who's Jamie?" Then a wave of understanding seemed to wash over him. "She's that girl you mentioned months ago. I told you not to keep seeing her."

"I don't care." Dean did care. It'd been a hard decision for him to make, one that went against almost everything he'd ever done, but he couldn't bring himself to admit it. He was too proud.

"Dean, this isn't you. You're a hunter. Not-"

"And whose choice was that?"

That shut John up.

"I can make my own choices now. And I'm choosing to stay here."

"If you stay here, you'll have to leave Sam."

"Kids are supposed to move out when they grow up, and their little brothers are supposed to stay. This is how it's supposed to be. Besides, I can still call, he can visit…"

Dean paused for a second. John had this look on his face like he'd gotten an idea, and that was never a good thing.

"It's not like I'll never see him again." If he was being perfectly honest, Dean wasn't sure who he was trying to convince, John or himself.

"What if I cut you off from Sam?" When John got an idea, it was never a good thing.

And Dean definitely hadn't seen it coming. "What - what d'you mean?"

John had that look on his face, the one people get when they think they're the most brilliant person in the world, but you're still an idiot for falling for it. "I mean exactly what I said. No phone calls, no letters, no visits, no anything. If you leave now, you don't get to see Sam at all."

Dean gaped at John. He'd known his father wouldn't like what he'd decided to do, but he never thought John would take it this far.

John simply smiled at Dean. He thought he had him. And for a second, Dean thought he did too. Dean couldn't leave Sam with just John. John didn't understand Sam, and he definitely wasn't good with kids. Or people in general, really. At least if they could talk on the phone Sam could call him if something wasn't right, and Dean could fix it. But if that wasn't even an option, Dean couldn't just go. Dean knew what he had to do. "I guess I could…"

Jamie… his beautiful little Jamie…

And then the answer came to him. Something utterly insane. Maybe if he threatened to do it, John would back down. Just like bluffing in poker. "Then I'll sue you for custody."

"You'll what?"

"Sue you for custody. I'll win, and you know it. All I need to do is tell them about how I raised Sammy, not you."

If looks could kill, Dean would be dead. Then John forced his face into a smile and said, "Do I at least get to see a picture of this girl you intend to leave me for?"

Dean didn't see how it could hurt, so he pulled a picture of him and Jamie at the pond out of his wallet. It'd been warm that day. Dean had been wearing just a t-shirt, but Jamie had still been clutching Dean's jacket around her. No matter how warm it got outside, she was always cold without it.

John stared at the picture in complete shock for a second before he managed to find his voice. "What did you say her name was again? Her full name?"

"Jamie Lewis."

"Where did you meet her?"

"Outside the library. It was raining, and she didn't have a way to get home."

"So you gave her a ride." John seemed to be half talking to himself, too busy thinking to really acknowledge Dean's presence.

Dean set his jaw stubbornly. "So?"

John gave Dean back his picture. "Dean, please go to bed. I've got one more thing to do tonight. We'll talk about this more in the morning."

Dean nodded tersely and left to his room. It was a start. He waited fifteen minutes after John left before he wrote Sam a note, left it on the kitchen table, and climbed out the bedroom window. He needed to talk to Jamie. This was serious.

Author's after thought: Like I said, no flames please, but constructive criticism is completely welcome. PLEASE REVIEW