"I'm so not ready to be back here," Sam stared out the passenger window as Dean rolled the car into the campus parking lot. "Nothing's changed. Except the faces. It's still all youth, happiness, promise. The future. None know what's out there in the dark. Just like Jess didn't. I am so not ready to be back here."
Outside students were crowding around, walking from one class to another, studying on the grass under the shade of the trees. Or just picnicking. There were the jocks, throwing around a football. The geeks, hurrying to class, the stoners kicking around a hackysack, and A LOT of average students. It was a beautiful day really, sunny day in April. Right now everyone was relaxed, mid-terms'd just passed.
Dean quickly found a spot for the car and parked it. He grinned at Sam as he opened his car door. He got out taking a huge breath it and looking around happily. Sam got out of his side of the car, making a point to slam the door a bit to get his bothers attention. Dean grinned at him, before continuing to stare after some girls.
"Damn Sammy, why'd you never tell me this place is like Mecca to hot chicks?" Sam sighed and rolled his eyes at his brother .Sam walked around the nose of the car and stopping next to Dean
"Come on dean, we're here to look for this Alexandra chick. Focus," He snapped his fingers in front of deans eyes, who was waving at some girls who looked back over their shoulder at him with a big smile. "Look, we can go to a student bar or club tonight, ok? Now focus!"
Dean seemed content with that promise smiling at his little brother. Sam set off across the university lawn, towards the main through fare footpath. Dean paced him. Still enjoying the sights around him he made and effort to get his cool back. Sam was unusually brisk though. "Eyes front soldier..... jeesh he's marching."
"So where we headed?" Dean tried to go for nonchalance, but Sams behavior was worrying. Sam shot him a short look and returned his eyes to where he was walking curtly.
"The library. I should be able to access student rosters there. And find out more. Missouri said she was a student here." He thought back to that night a week ago.
Missouri was so sympathetic, it almost made him feel worse. Pity. He didn't need pity. He needed to just suck it up. "Well, Stanford's a big town." Missouri shook her head. " No Sam. The university. I felt her there. I'm sorry honey." It felt like time had just stopped for him then. He slumped back onto the floor, sitting like a sack of potatoes for all the spirit in him. He was vaguely aware of Cas and Dean asking Missouri questions, all three asking if he was okey. He nodded eventually, getting up. "I'm gonna.... head to bed." He didn't take anything in after that, just walking up those stairs and dropping down on the bed Missouri made him, in the same room as his brother.
"Sam!" He shook his head a little and blinked. He looked left of him at his brother. Dean couldn't hide the worry in his eyes, he never could for him. "Sam are you alright? You just.... Zoned out on me there li'l bro..." There was something more in his eyes too Sam realized. "Fear. He's scared."
"I'm fine." He mumbled looking ahead again. Lying to Dean always ate him up inside, but it was better then having him worry and fuss. Besides, Sam just had to grow a pair and suck it up. Right? He looked up at the building they'd reached. He must've zoned out a while, because they covered quite the distance. Somehow his feet remembered these walks and carried him straight to the main building, behind which the library lay. "Right. Library's this way."
Dean followed sam through a tunnel which passed under the main building and into a courtyard.. In the middle was a square building Sam set off on the footpath there, on the grass surrounding it students were reading and socializing. He ignored all of them going straight for the library. Dean noticed a small group clotting near a tree near the entrance noticing them. One of the guys poked another and pointed at sam. The bloke broke from the group and walked towards them smiling hugely. He was a young man, bit old for a student though. Afro-American, thin and lanky. He wore what clearly was a Uniform. When he was withing three yards and they didn't stop he called.
"Sam? Is that you Sam?" this made sam stop dead in his tracks Dean looked at his little brother eyebrows raised as he peered at the guy approaching them. "Sam winchester. Never thought I'd see you here again. Everyone figured you'd just.... gone somewhere else! What brings you back here?"
"Ray? Is that you?" Samd face lit up in recognition of his old friend and smiled. "Myeah just here... For some closure I guess. It's bene rough on me these past years. What're you up to now-a-days?"
"I work at the library. I'm on break now. But damn dude, we gotta do a beer or something and catch up." Dean rolled his eyes and shuffled his feet a bit restlessly.
"Uh sorry to interrupt your Memories-moment, but Sam, don't we have something to do?" He pushed his brothers shoulder and looked him in the eye, trying very hard to get him back on the case. They didn't have time for this.
"Oh yeah. Ray this is my brother, Dean. We've been road tripping these past few years. Just needed to be out and experiencing the world after... well you know." Ray held out is hand to dean who shook it curtly and smiled, glaring at Sam again.
"Hey, I can see you guys are in a hurry n all. Where you staying at?" Ray cocked his head to sam who looked at his brother a second.
"Nowhere as of yet.... But we were gonna do a beer tonight anyhow, so name a bar, we'll meet you there." Sam smiled at Ray while dean impatiently stood besides him.
"Yea I know a place. S a bar n diner a few blocks from here. Students go there all the time. Called the Burrow." Ray pointed behind him with his thumb
"Yeah we'll see ya there then." Sam clasped his old friend's hand and then turned at Deans tugging on his jacket. Dean briskly walked to the entrance of the library while Sam followed him, quite baffled at his brothers uncharacteristically cold approach to Ray.
They'd been here for over half an hour. The library lady was starting to look at them funny because Sam kept cursing under his breath when a combination didn't work. Dean sighed and flicked through the campus paper again. Not much of note was in it, but it was better then staring at his little bother's frustrated attempts to crack the system and find this Alexandra's schedule.
They sat in a niece of the library, hidden by bookcases all around. There were 4 tables with computers on them in the middle of them, and they'd claimed one. It wasn't the most private spot in the world, but at this time of day, with this weather the library was pretty much empty. Dean flicked through the paper again, not really taking things in. He wanted to be outside on the grass, talking to the students especially the female ones. He'd seen a few he'd like to interrogate in private. Smiling at this thought he flicked through a few pages again. Something was nibbling at the back of his brain.
"Yathzee. I'm in." Sam grinned at him. Dean looked up giving his little brother half a smile and then stared at the campus paper again. He didn't know what dragged his attention to it for a little while and flicked the pages again, scanning the subjects. Sam was typing vigorously again, but in a much better mood now. And then it hit him. About 40% of the photos taken inn the newspaper were by the same person. Alexandra Mathews.
"Got her record here. Address, Subjects, time table. I'll print it, go over to the printer though. So no-one can intercept it." Sam nudged his brother who was staring at the Campus paper like he'd just seen the light or something. Dean looked up confused and distracted.
"What? Oh printer yeah. Good work Sammy." He got up so fast he almost threw over the chair and absent-mindedly walked to the printer. Sam stared after his brother, confusion settling on his face. He raised and eyebrow and reached for the campus paper, wandering what could've distracted dean so much. None of the subjects seemed to have anything interesting to say, but he studied the page meticulously anyhow.
"It's the photographs. She works for the campus paper." Dean sat back down on his chair going over the record Sam printed. There was a picture in there too. A young girl(age 24 it said) smiled out at him, long wavy hair, color hard to tell from the black and white picture. She seemed to have a certain mischievousness about her smile and eyes. A ring in her lip further demoted the good girl image.
"She's kinda cute." Dean grinned at his brother and showed the picture. Sam rolled his eyes at his older brother, but had to agree there was something in the picture.
"Probably just a good shot." He logged out of the computer, after erasing it's history. He folded the papers and shoved them in his pant's back pocket while standing up.
"Lets go dean, find a motel and call Cas. And get some lunch too." Dean got up following sam who was already on his way out. He grabbed alongthe campus paper from the table, sauntering after his little brother.
"What time is it?" Sam checked his watch. they walked into the door of the Burrow. It wasn't a big place, but cosy. All done in old wood there were booths on one end, a pool table and some cleared space on the other, The bar was lined with plain wooden stools.
"It's five to eleven. It'll be five minutes before Cas drops in." Sam looked around the place, following his brother up to the bar. Ray was chatting to some girls by the pool table. They laughed and he grinned. Sam shook his head smiling and joined Dean at the bar.
"Two beers." Dean laid down a 10 dollar bill on the counter, smiling at the barmaid. "Keep the change."
Ray spotted them and waved coming over. Rolling his eyes Dean handed Sam his beer.
"Can't believe he was a friend of yours." mumbling he took a swing of his beer. Sam glared at him but before he could say anything Ray was next to them.
"Hey! You came!" He clanked his own beer bottle against Sam's and held it out to dean Who, leaning on the bar, raised an eyebrow at him. He gave Rays bottle a half hearted click. Sam glared at him again. Dean smiled at Ray.
"Damn man... what've you bene up to these past years?" Ray turned back to Sam grinning and slapping his shoulder. "S good to see you!"
"I've uhm... Been road tripping with my brother.." Dean chuckled into his drink at Sam's discomfort. Sam shot him a pleading look which only fueled the fires of Deans amusement.
"What, for 5 years?" He clearly didn't believe sam. Sam was stammering for an excuse when the door opened and Castielle walked into the war. He looked up at the clock which said exactly eleven to the second, and then walked up to Sam and Dean in his brisk manner.
"Sam, Dean." he nodded at both of them and raised an eyebrow at Ray "who's this?" Ray had his hand out before you could blink, grabbing Castielle's and shaking it, introducing himself. Castielle just blinked at him and looked at his hand.
"Uhm... Right. Did you find her?" He turned back to Sam and Dean.
"Find who? And why?" Ray looked at Sam. Dean chuckled as he saw Sam's desperate struggle for an excuse, before Cas decided to tell the truth.
"Some girl. She might have valuable information for us." Sam tried to blow it off. Cas raised his eyebrow at the whole exchange looking at Dean for explanation. Dean just grinned.
"Information? You cops or something?" Ray crossed his arms over his chest. Sam stammered looking at dean for help.
"Or something. Special unit. We travel around. After the fire, Sammy decided to join us." Dean cut in with a charming smile. Sam almost sighed in relief nodding. Suddenly Castielle snapped his head up and looked around. His face got very focused as if he was listening for something.
"Cas? What's up?" Sam and Dean both looked around worried for an attack. Ray looked utterly baffled
"Something wrong with your friend?" He asked Dean who absent-mindedly shook his head.
"Boss... and I don't know." He snapped his fingers in front of Cas's face who suddenly looked at him, snapping out of whatever dimension he'd gotten into.
"She's here." Cas stammered, looking toward the entrance door that just opened.
Disclaimer: don't own anything, except my own mind-farts.
Authors note: Okey it's short one this time and it's late I know. Anyhow, remember the guy at the Halloween party season 1 episode 1? I thought I'd use him, he seemed like the type who'd drop out but stick close to college xD Also he didn't have a name, so I called him Ray. I'll try to update every Friday/Saturday from now on.
Let me know what you think. And thanks for the wonderful review and reactions!