Chapter Three

Tish tore the slip off of her order pad and stuck it into Priestly's violet spikes all over his head. He gave her a smile as he pulled the slip down and glanced at it, turning back to the stove.

"So…" said Jen, turning towards Priestly, "did those guys find you yet?"

Priestly glanced over at her. "Not yet. Not sure if that's good or bad."

"Hey, if they show up with your past, we'll deal," said Piper. "If they back off, we'll be here. Everything's gonna be okay." She gave him a smile.

Priestly smiled back at her, looking back down at the stove and finishing up the simple meal. "Order up!"

Tish walked over with a plate, and Priestly plopped the sub down on it with the spatula.

"Hey, Priestly, you mind taking inventory?" asked Trucker as he walked over to take his place at the stove.

"Sure thing, boss man," Priestly told him, taking off his apron and accepting the clipboard Trucker held out.

Trucker put on an apron as Priestly disappeared into the back. Tish turned back to her waitressing, taking the plate to a booth and serving it.

Tish sincerely hoped that everything worked out between Priestly and these two mysterious family members. After everyone had closed up last night, Tish and Priestly had gone back to their apartment, and Tish had just held Priestly, trying to bring comfort to his addled mind. Whatever these two strangers had in mind, they better not hurt her boyfriend in any way.

Ten minutes into Priestly's inventory, Tish glanced up to see the tall younger man from last night stepping into the store. One by one, the other workers noticed his presence and stopped what they were doing.

The guy hesitantly approached the counter, giving Tish an uneasy smile. "Hi…Is, uh…is he here?"

Tish glanced towards the back room to see that Priestly had not emerged yet. She looked back at the man. "Yeah. I'll, uh…I'll go get him."

Tish headed into the back room, finding Priestly counting the cans of peppers with his pen before writing the number down on the clipboard. "Priestly."

He turned around and gave her a smile. "Trucker can't stand the heat in the kitchen?"

"No, it's not that," Tish told him. She braced herself for his reaction. "They're back."

Priestly froze, his eyes moving over to the door to the front.

"Not both of them, just the one," Tish told him.

Priestly looked down at the floor.

"I can tell them to come back later," Tish offered.

"No, no," Priestly told her, looking back up. "I wanna talk to him." He set the clipboard down on the shelf and took a step towards the door.

As Priestly stopped next to Tish, she pushed herself up on her toes and gave him a kiss.

"Ready?" asked Tish.

Priestly took a deep breath. "I hope so." He headed towards the dining room as Tish followed.

Priestly froze in the doorway, staring at the tall, brunette man standing at the counter. The guy's eyes met his before taking in Priestly's purple hair spikes, ear and eyebrow piercings, eyeliner, tattooes and t-shirt that proclaimed he sold crack for the C.I.A.

"Hey," said the guy.

Priestly didn't say anything as he just stared at the guy, trying to spot similar features to his own. Sure, they both had the same strong jaw line and piercing gaze, but he couldn't see anything else that would lead anyone to believe they were related.

Priestly stepped up to the counter in front of the man. "Hey, uh…"

The guy smiled as he caught on. "Sam…My name is Sam."

Priestly nodded. "And where is…" He gestured to the door.

"John," Sam supplied. "He's back at the motel. We thought it best if it was just one of us."

"And you guys are…" asked Priestly.

Sam smiled a little. "I'm your brother."

"Brother, huh?" said Priestly, a smile tugging at his lips. "And John?"

"He's our dad," Sam told him.

Priestly nodded. "And, uh…what happened to me? Why was I in the hospital?"

Sam's face grew sad. "You were in a car accident."

"So, you know what happened to me," said Priestly shortly.

Sam frowned a little, confused. "Yeah."

"Then why the hell didn't anyone come for me?" asked Priestly hotly. "Why did I spend two months in the hospital without so much as a Get Well card?"

Sam's confused frown turned into a sympathetic one. "You were on a road trip. When you hadn't called after a few days, we started trying to track you down. Took us two months to find out where the accident happened, and by then…you were gone."

Priestly stared at him, trying to take that in. They didn't abandon me…

"I am so sorry," Sam told him, a tear escaping the corner of his eye. "We tried so hard to find you. I didn't want to, but…I started to think you were…" He took a few breaths as his eyes raked over Priestly's face, seeming to try to convince himself his brother was alive.

Finally believing him, Priestly started his questions. "Have I always been like this?"

Sam shook his head. "No, the amnesia is a new thing—"

Priestly chuckled a little, which caught Sam's attention and caused him to stare. "Well, I kinda figured the amnesia came from the accident, genius. I meant, did I always look like this?" He gestured to his look. "I mean, you kinda gave me a weird look yesterday and today when you saw me."

"Yeah, you, uh, you never looked like this," Sam told him, waving his hand at Priestly's clothes and hair.

Priestly chuckled. "Yeah, I figured."

"What made you decide to start looking like…" asked Sam, struggling with the word.

"A freak?" suggested Priestly.

"Uh, no, I-I mean—you're—" stuttered Sam.

"It's okay," Priestly told him, shrugging. "I don't know. I just wanted to be someone, you know. I was sick of no one knowing who I was, so I decided to be someone people would remember. And I, uh…I kinda like it. I don't know why, but it feels kind of nice standing out for some reason."

Sam gave a small smile for some reason as he nodded. "Well, it's, uh…it's…nice…I guess."

Priestly smiled. "So, uh…what did I do? Before cooking sandwiches, that is."

"Mechanic," Sam told him.

Priestly nodded. "Makes sense. What about you guys?"

"Dad's a mechanic, too," said Sam. "I was actually about to get into law school…before you…"

Priestly sighed. "I'm sorry, man. I didn't mean to make you—"

"No, no, it's not your fault," Sam told him. "You're more important than some law degree."

Priestly would never admit it, but that one phrase filled him with more joy than he had expected. His family had been looking for him. And it looked like the reason they hadn't found him was because they wouldn't have recognized him in his new look.

"Look, uh…" began Priestly, "can…can we meet somewhere later? The three of us?"

Sam nodded as he smiled a little. "Yeah…Yeah, definitely. Um…the pier?"

Priestly nodded. "Works for me. I get off work at five. Meet six-ish?"

"Sure," said Sam. "We'll see you then."

"See ya," Priestly smiled at him.

Sam started heading towards the door.

"Wait," Priestly called.

Sam stopped at the door, looking back at him.

Priestly hesitated a moment. "What's my name?"

Sam smiled. "Dean. Your name is Dean."

Priestly mused over the name. "Dean…Dean Priestly. I like it."

"Uh, well, actually, it's Winchester," Sam told him. "Our last name is Winchester."

"Dean Winchester…" Priestly considered. "Got a nice ring to it."

Sam smiled. "We'll see you later, Dean."

"Uh, yeah, about that," Priestly told him. "I, uh…I know my name is Dean and you guys know me as Dean, but…all I've known myself as is Priestly. If you guys could…"

Sam nodded. "Sure thing…Priestly." He turned and headed out of the shop.

Priestly watched him go before he sensed someone scooting up close to him.

"See," said Piper. "I knew it would all work out."

Priestly looked over to see his friends all watching him. He smiled at them. "I have a brother…and a dad."

Jen smiled. "We heard…Dean."

"Hey, hey, hey, still just Priestly," he told them. He then smirked. "But you gotta admit: way better than Boaz."

*********************************************SPN/T IH************************************************ ******

Priestly tossed his apron onto the counter. "Alright, gang, I'm headed to my family reunion."

"Good luck," Trucker told him.

"Hey, Renaissance Man," called Tish, heading over to him. "You want some company?"

Priestly pondered it for a moment. "I think this first time with them, I should make it just me. But I wanan introduce you to them soon."

Tish nodded. "I'd love to meet them. Do you, uh…want me to walk with you?"

Priestly smiled. "Sounds good."

Tish turned to the counter. "Trucker, can—"

"Have fun, you two," Trucker told them.

Tish smiled back at him and turned to Priestly. "After you."

Priestly led Tish out of the shop, and they headed off down the street.

"So…" began Tish, "if you ever get your memory back…you gonna keep going by Priestly or you switching to Dean?"

Priestly shrugged. "Not really sure yet. So, I'm just not gonna decide until the memories come back." He looked down at his feet. "If they come back."

"Hey," said Tish, grasping onto his hand, "they'll come back. Sooner or later, you'll remember."

Priestly smiled over at her. "I hope so."

"So, you're a mechanic," said Tish. "That explains the callused hands and the muscles."

"Oh…" mused Priestly, raising his arm and clenching his bicep, "you've noticed the muscles, have you?"

Tish smiled and leaned close, a hand on his chest. "How could I not, you big, manly man you."

Priestly ducked his head and took on a Southern accent. "Aw, shucks, ma'am."

Tish giggled and leaned back away from him, keeping her grip on his hand. "Where do you think you got Boaz Priestly from? You know, on the insurance card."

Priestly shrugged, frowning in thought. "Maybe I got an uncle or something by that name."

"Guess that's a question for your family," Tish told him.

"Family…" said Priestly, squeezing her hand. "I thought I'd had all the family I needed, and now…now, I have an all new family to figure out."

"Who will blend right in with ours," Tish said. "They'll meet everyone else in the sub shop, and we'll all get along perfectly."

Priestly chuckled. "Now, that sounds like wishful thinking."

"Well, you just think of the worst all the time, don't you?" said Tish.

Priestly shrugged. "It's a gift." He stopped in his tracks and swung Tish around by the hand, pulling her close and wrapping his other arm around her waist. "But that's what I have you for." He pulled her closer to him.

Tish leaned her head up towards him. "Well, first…you have to catch me." She took off down the sidewalk with a laugh.

"That's cheating!" Priestly called, smiling and taking off after her as they darted around the corner.

Tish laughed loudly as Priestly finally caught up to her, wrapping his arms around her from behind and lifting her from the ground.

"Put me down!" Tish cried. "Put me down, Boaz!"

"No way, Platisha!" Priestly shouted, spinning her around.

Tish laughed as Priestly spun her before setting her down. She spun around and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"And what's my prize for my catch?" asked Priestly.

"Mm, close your eyes," Tish told him. "It's a surprise."

"I love surprises," said Priestly, closing his eyes.

The next second, Tish kissed him. Priestly kissed her back, opening his eyes and smiling down at her.

"And what do you know?" said Tish. "We made it."

Priestly looked over at the pier they were standing in front of. "We did." He narrowed his eyes towards the end of the pier, spotting two familiar figures. "Well, look at that. They're early."

"You'll do great," said Tish. "Sam already likes you. And dads are obligated to love their kids."

Priestly smiled at her and gave her one last kiss. "Wait for me?"

"Always," Tish told him.

Priestly turned towards the pier, took a deep breath, and too uneasy steps towards his family and his answers.

I know what you're thinking. That was kinda sappy for Dean. I was thinking the same thing near the end, but this is Priestly now. And I kinda got the feeling from the end of the movie that Priestly and Tish would have kind of a joking/loving relationship like that, so...

Besides, I'm the writer. What I say goes. Ha-Ha!