A/N: Alright, special treat for you guys. You get two chapters this week! Yay! As I said last chapter, the towns mentioned in this chapter are fictional.
This chapter is dedicated to LaughingLadyBug. Sorry again for the accidental spoiler slip last night. I hope this makes up for it and that the chapter lives up to that sneak preview I gave you. This one's for you, LLB.
Disclaimer: Obviously, I don't own Supernatural. Otherwise, I wouldn't be writing fanfiction. I wish these people would quit rubbing it in my face already. I gotta say this every time I post a chapter. It actually gets kind of old.
It took a couple weeks, but Dean did get used to his new surroundings. He enjoyed the quiet of the woods, but was glad the cabin wasn't so far away from town to be inconvenient. He'd been pleased to find that Audrey had a gun range in the backyard, of which he took full advantage. There was also a big shelter behind the house where Dean repaired the damage done to his Baby during the face-off in Kansas.
Dean was also grateful that Audrey didn't push him. He hated when people tried to beat what he was feeling out of him; all it did was make him mad. Audrey didn't ask any questions, just gave him the space he needed to mourn, and he appreciated it. Dean still hadn't opened up much since moving in with Audrey, but the young woman didn't hold it against him. She talked to him politely, even joked around with him, and she understood that his silence had nothing to do with her.
It was nice having that. When Sam had died, Dean thought he would be alone for the rest of his life. Knowing that he wasn't alone was something Dean hadn't even known he needed. "Hey," a voice broke through his thoughts as he looked up from under the Impala's hood. Audrey stood in the shelter's doorway. She had changed out of her work scrubs and was now wearing a sundress. "I'm going back over to Wayline. Someone from work asked me to pick her son up from school since she and her husband are both working late. I'll make a Walmart run while I'm over there. We're running low on some stuff. You need me to get you anything?" Dean just shook his head. "Alright, I'll be back after-while. If I'm not back by five, will you cook a potato, put the pot pie together, and then put it in the oven?" Dean nodded. "Thanks." Audrey flashed him a smile before climbing into her Camry and driving away.
After spending over an hour tuning up his car, Dean decided it would be a good idea to get a shower and wash all the sweat, dirt, and engine grease off his body. With the noise of both the shower and the radio going on in the bathroom, Dean didn't hear the front door being unlocked and opened, nor did he hear the footsteps sounding through the house.
Working on the Impala had built up an appetite, so Dean sauntered from the bathroom to the kitchen in just his jeans to raid the fridge. "That feels so good," he muttered to himself when the cool air of the refrigerator hit his bare chest. He'd just chosen a piece of cheesecake as his snack when an authoritative voice startled him.
"What are you doing in here?" Whirling around, Dean found himself face to face with a man he'd never seen before. Sure he'd only been to town a few times since Audrey brought him to Woodnor, but Dean was a keen observer of his surroundings, especially in new places. He instinctively reached behind him for his gun, but then remembered that he'd just gotten out of the shower and so didn't have it on him. "I asked you what you're doing in here," the man said again, taking a threatening step closer.
"I-I was just getting something to eat," the younger man explained haltingly, holding his hands out to the side in a disarming manner.
"That's not what I was asking," the older man interrupted. "What I meant to say was what are you doing in my niece's house?"
Dean didn't really know how to respond to that. Apparently, Audrey hadn't told her family that she'd brought a stranger home to live with her. Sure, he would never harm a hair on her head as long as she wasn't an evil creature, but he was still a stranger all the same. "Uh, I, I just-"
"I want you out of here this instant," the man said. "And you better not come back."
"But I-"
"I told you to get out!" The man stepped even closer and was just about to reach for Dean when the front door opened with a bang.
"Uncle Jack, what's going on?" Audrey shouted. She looked in angry confusion at the scene in her kitchen. There was a boy no older than eight cowering behind her in fear.
"I came here to use your computer since mine's busted. I found this guy in your fridge and was just telling him to get out of here," the man, Jack, explained, turning a furious eye back on Dean. Dean just looked between the older man threatening him and the younger woman, unsure of what to do. Audrey approached him and put a gentle hand on his arm.
"Dean, go to your room," she said calmly. "Take Tyler with you please. Find something to watch on TV or something. Just go on and get out of here. It's okay." Ever so slowly, Dean lowered his still raised arms and glanced at the child. Giving Audrey a nod, he started walking toward the hallway. Tyler followed quickly behind, eager to get out of the scary situation. Once she heard the bedroom door shut, Audrey turned on her uncle. "Was that really necessary?" she demanded.
"How was I supposed to react to seeing a strange man standing in your kitchen half naked?" Jack responded, his tone just as harsh as Audrey's. "Who is he, and how do you know him? What's he even doing here?"
"He lives here," Audrey answered. The young woman was livid. She had not wanted her family finding out about Dean, at least not like this. She was waiting for him to really be settled and comfortable before introducing him to her relatives. "He's been here for right at three weeks."
"You mean to tell me that you've been living with a man that none of us knows for three weeks?" Jack couldn't believe his ears.
"That's exactly what I mean," Audrey bit back.
"You know you can't be having a man living in your house. Do you even know his last name? He could be a serial killer, or something even worse."
"I met him when I went to that conference in Lawrence," said Audrey. "I found him hurt in the alley behind the hospital. He's got no home, no family, I don't think he even has any friends. I knew he needed help, so I brought him home with me. And yes, I know his last name. I saw it on his driver's license while we were at a diner on the way here."
"You've done some pretty dumb things, Audrey," said Jack, shaking his head in disappointment, "but this has got to be the stupidest thing you've ever done."
"He needed my help!" Audrey shouted. She took a deep breath and released it slowly through her nose. "I think he's a soldier, Uncle Jack." That gave the older man pause. "He's never said anything about actually being in the military, but the way he moves, the way he talks, everything about him just screams it. And the way his brother and friends died, they were fighting something. I don't know what or where, but Dean has survived some awful things. He's completely alone. I couldn't stand to leave him by himself in that alley."
"I can't condone him living here with you," Jack insisted. "And I know your parents won't either."
"Well, it's not up to you who I decide to bring into my house," Audrey argued. "If you want to tell Mama and Daddy, fine. But this is my home, and Dean's staying here with me. He needs a stable home, especially now when he's so vulnerable."
"He didn't seem too vulnerable to me," said Jack. "In fact, when I caught him, he reacted as if to pull a pistol out of his jeans."
"Which is probably what he was doing," Audrey said defensively. "See what I mean? Dean's got the instinct to defend. He didn't know who you were, or that you weren't a threat. He's only been to town with me twice since he's been here."
"Then you should have set him up at a hotel," Jack countered. "He could be dangerous."
"He's been here for three weeks, Uncle Jack. If Dean wanted to hurt me, he would have done it by now. He's had more than enough opportunities." Audrey stared her uncle down until it just got too much to handle. "He's staying here with me. He doesn't need to be alone."
There was a finality to Audrey's tone that Jack couldn't argue with anymore. "Fine," Jack relented reluctantly. "You do whatever you want, but don't come crying to me when he hurts you." The man left no room for response and walked out of the house, slamming the door behind him.
"So much for my business being my business," grumbled Audrey as she started washing and peeling a potato. She was unaware of anyone else in the room until she heard a throat clearing. Turning, she found Dean standing by the island. He'd put on a shirt since she last saw him. "Oh, Dean. I'm so sorry about my uncle. I had no idea he would even come over here. Is Tyler still in your room?"
"Do you need me to leave?" asked Dean, ignoring the question. He seemed almost timid to Audrey, and his tone conveyed a vulnerability that he didn't show outwardly. "I don't want to cause any trouble with your family."
"You're not leaving unless you really want to," Audrey assured him. "I'm not kicking you out of here. If you want to stay, then you stay right here. Forget what he has to say about it. This is your home now just as much as it is mine." She set a pot of water on the stove and started cutting the potato into pieces.
"Actually," Dean began slowly, drawing the young woman's attention back to himself, "I was wondering if you knew any places that are looking for new employees." Audrey's eyes widened in surprise, the corners of her lips quirking in delight. "I can't ask you to continue supporting me like you've been the last few weeks. I know you don't mind me living here with you, but I don't want to be a burden."
"Dean, I promise you, you're not a burden." Audrey dropped the rest of the vegetable in the water and turned back to Dean. Her hands reached out and grabbed his, as they had several times before. Since Dean had come to live with her, Audrey had discovered that the only form of comforting touch he was really okay with was holding his hands. The first time she'd tried to put an arm around him, he'd shied away. So she stuck with what she knew would help. "I really like having you here. It's a refreshing change of pace from my usual solitude or the occasional relative dropping by. If you want to work so you feel better about staying, then I would be glad to help you find a job. But please, don't let yourself feel like a burden anymore. Because that's not what you are."
Dean was very quiet for a minute. He was fighting an internal battle. Growing up, Dean, Sam, and their dad hadn't stayed in one place for much longer than a month, and that was a long stay for them. And once he'd started hunting with Sam, their time in one town was reduced to a few days, maybe a week or two when the hunt proved to be extra difficult. Now, though, he'd been with Audrey for three weeks, right about the time they would be moving along.
What was so surprising is that Dean didn't want to leave. He'd found he actually liked being settled in one place, which he hadn't known since he was four years old. He wasn't even feeling the itch to move, though it had only been a few weeks; he was still waiting for that to happen. But Dean was genuinely comfortable here in this cabin in the backwoods of Georgia. He couldn't say he was happy here, as he was still grieving and trying to get used to this new setting, but he could honestly say he was well on his way to content. "I want to stay here," he said resolutely.
The beaming smile Audrey gave him made him feel a little self-conscious, and it took a lot of self control to hold her gaze. "That's great, Dean," she cheered. "I'll start asking around at work tomorrow. You want to work at a car shop or something like that?" Dean just shrugged a little, not quite sure how to answer. "Well, I'll see if any of the shops around Wayline are looking for a new mechanic. Sound good?" Dean nodded. "Alright then. Go on and get Tyler back in here. He can do his homework while we cook supper."
As Dean walked back down the hall to his room, he mulled over the conversation that just transpired. He was going to get a job. He wasn't alone in his world anymore, not while he lived with Audrey. "Hey, Tyler," he said when he poked his head into the room. "Come on to the kitchen and work on your homework before dinner." The boy nodded and ducked past Dean to get to the hallway. Watching Tyler scurry through the house, Dean felt a peace he hadn't known in twenty-seven years. He was home.
A/N: A little bit of conflict there in this chapter. Don't worry, things will get smoothed over. Don't forget to review! Thanks!
