Need You Now
Chapter 3
AN: Hey all! This is the last part to the mini series. Hope you've enjoyed it, and thank you for the reviews!
"Dean? Are you there?"
"Yeah, I'm here."
"Did I wake you up? Oh gosh, it's so late, I'm sorry-"
"No, no, it's fine. I was already up."
Dean scrambled from the bed and stumbled outside so he wouldn't disturb Sam. The door clicked silently and he made his way over to Baby, leaning gently against her hood.
"How are you?"
God, it was so good to hear her voice again. "Not too bad. You doing okay?"
"Not too bad either."
"Good, good. How's school going?"
"Almost done for the year. Thank goodness. And you? How's your um…work?"
He noticed the hesitation. "It's fine. Actually, we caught a case in a small town an hour away from you."
"Oh really? That's great!"
"Yeah…" he trailed away. This small talk thing was killing him. There were so many questions he wanted to ask but he was afraid it would only scare her off. "Look, Holly-"
"I'm sorry, I know you hate the 'how's the weather' conversation crap so I'll stop stalling and get straight to the point," she started. Dean couldn't help it; he smirked. "I called you because I've been thinking about you a lot lately. About us and how things ended. And I want to talk to you about that, about everything."
"Everything?"
"Yes. I feel awful for pushing you away like that. I just…"
He perked up when you paused. "Holly?"
"I miss you, Dean. God, I miss you," Dean puffed out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "I need you so much, I can't stand being away from you anymore. I don't know what I was thinking."
"Holly, this is-"
"I know, I know this is completely out of the blue but I've been contemplating it for a few weeks. I want to start over. Really start over. No lies, no secrets. Just one hundred percent pure honesty."
"Holly-"
"And I realize that it's totally unfair of me to ask that of you. You've probably moved on but I haven't. I can't. My life is stuck in an infinite loop of boring without you."
Dean smiled. "Holly stop, you don't have to explain anymore. You had me at 'I miss you'."
"What? Really? So you're not with anyone else?" She sounded surprised.
"Are you kidding? This was one of the longest five months of my life. A day didn't go by that I didn't think about you. There was no room in my head to even consider having one night stands because almost literally everything reminded me of you. Sam knows, he was here for the whole thing. He uh," Dean chuckled. "he even told me not to try to call you tonight since we're so close to your town. Hell, I drank my feelings away because I couldn't do anything. Being away from you almost killed me."
She was quiet for a minute as she let it sink in. "That's probably the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. In a weird way."
He barked out a laugh. For the first time in months, he genuinely laughed. Giant smile, head tilted back, laughing. "Damn I missed you."
"Can we meet? Seeing as you're not so far away."
"Sweetheart, I wold love nothing more. But first thing's first," Dean's voice sobered, dreading what he was about to say. "I need to know about your situation. Are you a hunter or not?"
"Oh," she sighed. "That. Okay, I suppose I owe you. But I have to do it now over the phone. Otherwise, I'll chicken out. I know it's shitty but-"
"Hey, whatever you feel is right is fine with me. We've got time," he reassured soothingly.
"And that's why I love you," she said, a smile laced in the tone of her voice. "So I guess I'll start at the beginning. I come from a whole family of hunters. My parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, great grandparents. Literally, everyone."
Dean pondered on that. "Why haven't I met up with you before?"
"You've probably crossed paths with one of them, but me well…I kind of…refused? To be a hunter, I mean."
"Good choice."
"I watched my family die. One by one. My father and older brothers started officially training me when I was thirteen but until then I had to deal with their broken limbs, the cuts and bruises, the temporary comas, and eventually the funerals."
"I'm sorry. I know what that's like."
She grew quiet. Dean didn't want to interrupt her so he waited patiently for her to continue. He knew how hard it was to talk about the past so he would wait for her, no matter how long it took.
"My first kill was when I was fifteen. It was a girl, around eleven or so, and she was a kitsune. Her name was April. Both of her parents were kitsune's as well but they died two years earlier and left April bouncing around foster homes all over the state. She'd been feeding off the dead by herself but she slipped up and accidentally killed someone. When we finally found her, she was sick. I didn't want to kill her; she seemed so helpless, but my father…he told me she was a monster and that monsters needed to be put down," Dean quirked an eyebrow. He'd said that himself too many times before. "I didn't kill her because he told me to. She begged me. She had stopped feeding because she felt so repulsed by herself for killing an innocent person. She couldn't live that way anymore. After that, I told my family that I would never be a hunter.
"There was fighting and a lot of yelling but after April…How could I continue that life? She was a little girl and it's not like she asked to be a kitsune. How could I justify putting down those that never chose what they became? Whether they were born that way or were turned."
"I get what you're saying, but I've come across so many creatures and monsters that are just pure evil sons of bitches. They knew what they were doing when they killed people. Hell, most of them enjoyed it."
"I know. I am all to familiar with those types. But April was the deciding factor. And I couldn't sit around and watch my family die. I didn't want to end up the same way. I left home the second I turned eighteen and never looked back. That was the hardest decision of my life."
Her line went silent again. Eventually, she continued on. "Dad died a year after that. Mom sent me a letter but I didn't go to the funeral. Months after, both of my brothers died. And then finally my mother, three years later. I got a phone call that time from the police. A few of their friends managed to bring her body back to our property and give her a hunter's funeral. I took all of our weapons with me and stashed them in a foot locker, that was how I had the machete that night with the vamps. So now...I'm the only one left."
It was subtle, but Dean caught the shift in her tone. It had wavered when she mentioned her mother, and again when she said she was all that was left.
"I'm sorry I never told you."
"Don't be, it's okay. I understand why you didn't."
"You know what's weird? We were together for a year and neither one of us asked the other about our families."
Dean thought about that. "Speaking of which, if we're going to start being honest, you should probably hear about mine. An eye for an eye, so to speak."
"Oh you really don't have to do that-"
"Yeah I do. It's only fair." Dean jumped into the story about his parents and Azazel, all of the horrifying memories. It had been years since he'd thought about it. Let alone talk about it. But if he had to choose one person in the entire world to know what had happened, he was glad it was Holly.
"Oh my God, Dean," she said in disbelief when he finished. "That's awful. I'm so sorry you and Sam had to go through that."
"Hey, it's all in the past. It's best to just keep on going. What's done is done."
"Yeah, you're right. Guess that means we're perfect for each other, since we both have such tragic backstories."
He stifled a laugh. "Oh no, don't get all cheesy rom-com on me."
"What? You know you like them too!" She laughed.
He smiled. "I think that's enough sharing for one day. Are you busy right now?"
"Well I was on a date with Netflix but that ended hours ago."
"Hey now, none of that Netflix and chill without me," he warned playfully. "I could go for a warm piece of cherry pie. Know a place?"
"Why, Mr. Winchester, I believe I do."
"See you there in an hour?"
"I'll be the one at the bar."
He grinned from ear to ear as he ended the call. Without wasting another second, he darted back inside the hotel room in search for his wallet and keys. He jotted down a quick note for Sam, because if everything went well Dean would not be back until the next day, and bolted out the door again. The Impala came to life in the still hours of the night, and with the radio up, he headed South. To her.
About a mile outside of Holly's town, it had begun to rain. Lightly at first but it picked up quickly the closer he got. It was pouring by the time he reached the diner. He rushed inside, shaking out his hair. By now it was almost three in the morning, so the diner was empty of customers. A familiar figure stood behind the counter wiping it down with a damp cloth.
"Hey, Alice," Dean said, taking a seat. The elderly woman raised her head and she smiled brightly.
"Well I'll be! Dean Winchester!" She laughed, setting the towel aside and coming around from behind the counter. She was a short woman, barely reaching to his chest, but she stood on her tiptoes to throw her arms around his massive frame. Dean smiled and returned her hug. "It's so good to see you, kiddo!"
"Yeah you too. Frank here?"
"Cleaning the kitchen," she indicated behind her. "So what ever happened to you? It's been, what? Almost six months?"
"Yeah uh," he smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, Holly and I broke up. She didn't tell you that?"
"We haven't seen much of her," she shook her head and sat in the chair next to Dean. "She's come in and out for coffee a few times but she's never stayed. Everytime I tried to ask her about you she changed the subject."
He nodded. "It was a hard breakup. But we talked earlier and she's supposed to be meeting me here soon."
Alice's face perked up. "Oh good! I'm glad, you two were so great together," she patted his hand gently. "Can I get you anything while you wait?"
"Sure, coffee'd be fine, thanks."
Fifteen minutes passed. Frank emerged from the kitchen and talked with Dean, catching up on things. Twenty minutes went by and a small group of young adults waltzed in, the majority of them completely wasted out of their minds. They laughed loudly, ordered several plates of food, coffee, sodas. The clear designated driver kept apologizing to Alice but she only smiled and joked around with them.
The raucous group of kids were lingering at their table when Dean checked his phone. No missed calls, no texts, and it was almost four a.m. now. Something wasn't right. He'd been in this business for too long to ignore a gut instinct.
"Holly hasn't called?" Alice asked him when she came by to fill up his cup. He indicated with a hand that he didn't want anymore.
"No," he sighed. He stood up and rifled around in his jeans pocket, pulled out a five dollar bill, and gave it to Alice. "I know I drove pretty fast but she should be here by now. I'm gonna head over to her place, check and make sure she's okay."
"Oh, honey wait a second, she moved," Alice said. She set down the coffee pot and produced the notepad that she took her orders on. Quickly, she scribbled out the new address. "Here."
"Thanks," he said gratefully, snatching the paper from her hand. "See you later."
"Go get her, kiddo." Alice waved him off and he shot back a grin.
The rain had lessened to a light drizzle. His phone's GPS indicated that he only had four more miles to go to reach her apartment. On the way he passed fields of farmland and open wooded areas. There was a street coming up on his left, which the pleasant voice from the GPS told him to take, so he did. He didn't even make it halfway down the road when he noticed a gut wrenching scene.
His heartbeat picked up because this was the last street on the map. It pounded wildly when the overturned car looked exactly like hers. The Impala slowed to a crawl and he finally parked and hopped out.
Please don't let it be her, please don't let it be her, he repeated in his head. Some ways off to his left was a large truck that had skid and stopped in a ditch, unturned. The cargo portion in the back had opened and several different sizes of metal, cylindrical pipes were scattered all over the road. Dean didn't see anyone in or near the truck so he headed over to the car. What he saw dropped him to his knees.
Holly was on her back, touching the roof, right arm sticking out of the shattered window. She didn't move, her eyes were closed, and she was barely breathing. Dean crawled over to her quickly, dismissing the broken glass that bit into the palms of his hands.
"No, no, no," he muttered as he clutched her arm. There were specks of blood on her arm as well as on the pavement around her, but it was nothing compared to when he peered inside the car. "Shit. Oh Jesus, Holly."
The windshield was only partially broken, cracked in several places, and a piece of pipe about six inches long had pierced through it and lodged itself into her sternum. He repeated her name as he gently tried to pull her from the vehicle. Blood covered her front, her back, spattering on her face, on the seats, and even more slowly oozed out from her body.
"Holly, can you hear me? Come on, sweetheart, wake up. Come on, Holly, please," Dean begged. He cradled her in his arms.
"Oh my god," a man's voice came from Dean's left. His head whipped around to see the driver of the truck, presumably. "Is she-"
"Call an ambulance!" Dean cut him off furiously.
"Did I-"
"Now!" Dean shouted. Still in shock the man numbly brought out his phone and turned away from her and Dean. The next moment, she was stirring. Her eyelids fluttered and she started to cough. What came out was more blood. "Hey, hey, it's okay. I'm here, baby."
"Dean?" she croaked, but it was too much and she inhaled sharply. She cried out in pain.
"Shhh, don't talk," he soothed. "There's an ambulance on the way okay? So just hang on."
"I'm-sorry-"
"Hey, stop-"
"No, it's fine. I can...," she gripped the front of his shirt and tried to pull herself up but the pain shot fire through her entire body and she slumped back down in defeat. "Dammit."
"Don't be so stubborn," Dean chuckled. He brushed her hair back from her forehead. There was a large gash over her right eyebrow and he pressed a thumb there to ease the bleeding.
"Dean-" she started but he shushed her again. "Quit that. I need-you need to know that I-"
"I already do."
He just held her while her breathing slowed. "There was a deer. It-ran out in front-I swerved to avoid the-the truck."
Dean grinned. "Those damn deer. If I had a dollar for every time one tried to jump in front of me on a back road, I'd be rich."
She sighed heavily, wincing. "And here I thought I would die by a-a monster or demon, but no, it's a fucking deer," His grip tightened around her. "I'm sorry."
"Stop saying that-"
"I thought we'd have more time."
"We do. We will. Where the hell is that damn ambulance?"
"Take my weapons. You and-and Sam will need them."
"Stop. You'll be fine."
"Dean-"
"Holly, no!" He cupped her face in his hands and peered into her eyes. They were already wet with tears. Dean grit his teeth and fought back tears of his own. "You're not going to die, do you hear me? The ambulance will come and you'll go to the hospital, and then this will all be a bad dream."
"Dean, look-look at me. Do you think I'll make it to a hospital?" she said sadly.
"Yes." There were sirens in the distance, getting closer with each second. He smiled. "See? It's coming for you, just hang in there."
But she wasn't looking at him anymore. Her gaze was past his shoulder, and she was openly crying, a smile on her face.
"It's them. Dean, I see them," she whispered happily. He glanced behind him and saw nothing but trees and darkness.
"Who?"
"My family," his stomach plummeted. "I think-I think they're waiting for me."
"No, no, you can't have her!" He shouted to the sky. He knew there was a reaper lingering around but he wouldn't let her go. "I thought I lost you once. I can't do it again. I can't, I need you."
"I know but, Dean, I'm not gonna make it-"
"Yes you will!"
Finally, the ambulance turned the corner and was tearing down the street. He waved an arm above his head while the truck driver stood by the side and waited.
"So bright..." he heard her say.
"It's here, sweetheart, it's-Holly?" He glanced down but her eyes had closed. She wasn't breathing anymore. "No! Come back to me, Holly, please!" He shook her arms but she didn't move. He placed his forehead against hers, wrapped her still body in his arms, and let the tears run down his face. Just like that, she was gone.
He sat with her until the ambulance, a firetruck, and two police cars arrived. He gave her forehead one last kiss and reluctantly let her go as the EMT crew gently pried her body from his arms. There wasn't any fight left in him anyway. The truck driver was talking with the police about what had happened. One of them mentioned to Dean that they were going to talk to him next, and he nodded mutely. A girl from the EMT noticed his hands and asked him if he wanted them taken care of but he just shook his head.
Activity happened in a blur all around him. Cars that were coming and going had to be redirected around the accident. The sirens were off but the red and blue lights still flashed brightly in the dark. At one point a news van pulled up just behind the Impala.
None of them made Dean move until it was time for the police to question him. As he was getting ready to stand, he noticed something in the back area of her car. A photograph of Holly and Dean was stuck to the pavement. He ignored the officer and pushed himself further into the vehicle. Dozens of pictures were littered in the backseat and an old box lay next to them. He gathered them up one by one, shoved them in the box, and finally stood.
He was questioned for a good ten minutes, had a camera shoved in his face, but he finally made it back to Baby. The scene was winding down. He watched as a tow truck lifted her car, turned it right side up, and hitched it to the back. The pipes were cleared off the road. While everyone was leaving, Dean was sitting behind the wheel, looking through the pictures. He couldn't believe she still had these. She must have brought them so the two of them could reminisce at the diner.
The road was quiet now.
Almost as if nothing had happened two hours prior.
Dean started up the car, picked up his favorite picture of Holly, and kissed it.
"Goodbye, sweetheart."
He wedged it in the overhead visor and rolled down the street to her apartment. All he would gather up is the weapons and let Alice do the rest. Then he would call Sam. And then return to the motel, where he would sleep, and hope that all of this really was just a bad dream.
