A/N: Thanks again to everyone who reviewed my story. I really appreciate that you took the time to tell me what you thought of it. Every little bit helps. :) I know this chapter isn't very long, but I hope you enjoy it. Please make sure that you review it!

Jo was sleeping contentedly when an obnoxious sound intruded upon her sleep. Once she realized that it was not a part of her dream, she started to think about what could be going off. It wasn't her alarm clock...she had forgotten to set it.

She was exhausted from working the night before until the early hours of the morning. It had been a particularly long night once she crawled into bed. There was extra work to be done at the bar for a state inspection. She had to stay until the job was finished. After hours of washing and scrubbing, she stumbled into her apartment and plopped down on her bed. Then she was too tired to even set her alarm. Now she figured she was sleeping in too late, and in doing so, late for her second job.

There was a particularly nasty spirit haunting a house not too far away. She had done the research, but needed to talk to some people. Jo had an appointment with a local researcher. She was missing it. Great.

Jo groaned when she remembered that whatever was making that sound had not yet stopped. She put her head back down on her pillow. She now knew what it was. Her cell phone was ringing. She stood up unsteadily and walked across the small room to grab at it quickly. Flipping it open she saw that she had four missed calls and two voicemail messages. Who the hell is calling me?

As she walked back to her bed, it began to ring again. Dean. Her heart started racing. If Dean was calling her, he must have no other choice. It had to be an emergency. Why was he calling her? What had happened? Surely the world must be coming to an end. He had never called her before. She flipped it open.

"Hello?"

"Jo?" she heard Dean ask frantically. He sounded worried.

"Yeah," she said slowly, rubbing her forehead.

There was a long pause. His heart rate seemed to go down some. Then all his concern seemed to disappear when he yelled, "Where the hell have you been? I've been calling you..."

"I know. I was sleeping," she interrupted with a certain tone of annoyance.

"Oh, well, uh. It's important. I wouldn't have called you otherwise."

Jo chuckled quietly and shook her head. She knew this. Dean knew this too, but for some reason felt the need to tell her.

"So, did you just miss me, Dean?" she asked with a smile and a shrug. "Did you decide to take me up on that offer to talk?"

Dean paused. Jo knew that she made him uncomfortable. It was what she wanted. He hadn't called her the other times when he said he would. Why should she feel sympathy for him now? It had been months, sure, but Jo couldn't give up that easily. She knew how to hold a grudge.

"No," Dean eventually responded. "Look, I know I haven't called...I've been busy. Hunting takes up a lot of time, you know that."

"Too much time to make a quick call? Look, Dean, I've had enough with your excuses. You didn't want to call me. Just be honest with me. I'm a big girl."

"I don't have to check in with you. Sam and I are on our own out here. You're there. I'm here. We have our own worlds. There's no reason for you to be in mine."

Jo paused. She knew he was right. Still, she couldn't keep herself from wondering what he was up to. She liked being independent. Jo was not the kind of girl who took pleasure in having a protective and jealous boyfriend. She would always need her space, and sometimes she didn't feel like talking to people. So, as frustrated as she was with herself for wanting to know more about Dean Winchester, she also understood his reluctance.

Dean was flustered. This conversation was not going as he had imagined. His plan was to tell her quickly and get it over with. He'd warn her and she would be filled with gratitude for him. His duty would be done, and without confrontation. Surely she would have been fine with him by now. It had been months...

She sighed. "As much as I love to argue with you Dean, and as much as I'm sure you love to argue with me, there has to be another reason for your call. What's going on?"

Dean was relieved. Arguing in person was one thing. Arguing over the phone, now that was uncomfortable. "I...uh...I just heard from Ash."

Jo waited for him to continue.

Why couldn't he get his brain to work correctly? "He told me that the yellow-eyed demon is headed your way. I thought you should...know."

"Of course. I'm...glad you called me, Dean. Thanks for giving me the heads up. I'll let you know if..."

"You're not going anywhere near that demon, Jo. This is the big leagues. We're not talking about crossroads demons. He could kill you. That's not going to happen, because you're not going to get involved."

"I know you have this thing against girls being hunters, but I..."

"No," Dean said firmly, almost harshly. "Listen to me, Jo. Stay away from that demon."

"Or what?" she asked defiantly.

"I can see you won't let this rest. You feel like you have to prove yourself. Well, this isn't the time to prove yourself, Jo! This is about survival!" he paused and she could hear the anger in his voice. "Sam and I, we're coming. You shouldn't get in the crossfire. I won't let that demon near you," and then so that it wouldn't appear as if he actually cared, he added, "because your mom would kill me."

He hung up on her. Jo looked at her phone.

"Bye, Dean," she said at the phone with fake cheerfulness. Closing her phone, she flopped back down onto her bed.

So the Winchester boys were coming her way. Was that excitement that she felt or apprehension? A meeting with Sam and Dean usually meant a full-blown argument. She wasn't worried though. She would hold her own. Right now she had to be following up on that spirit. Maybe she could still manage to get her research in that day. As she walked toward her bathroom to get ready, she looked back at her phone on her bed. With a grin, she said quietly, "Damn, I've missed you, Dean Winchester."

After having made progress that day, Sam and Dean stopped at a hotel to check in for the night. It had been several long stressful weeks. They hadn't taken any time in-between to enjoy the sights. Dean finally realized how tired he was as he was lying down on his bed. His body was aching, and he couldn't keep from yawning. As tired as his body was, however, his mind would not stop running.

Sam walked into the room, threw his coat down on a chair, and sat down on the bed across the room. He grabbed the remote and turned on the television. After flipping through the few channels briefly he settled on one show. When Dean looked up he saw that Sammy was watching the news. Typical.

Dean was amazed that Sam looked so normal sitting there, watching World News. Given all that Sam had been through the past few weeks, he still kept hunting. Dean had noticed a slight change in his brother. Sam still had his moments, but he had toughened up. He was filled with more vigor in a desire to get the job done. He researched a little harder, reacted a little quicker. At the end of the day, he actually slept. Dean no longer woke up to hearing Sam having a nightmare.

Dean thought that Sam had just gotten used to the job. Unknown by Dean, however, was the fact that Sam still looked to his big brother for re-assurance. When Dean said that things would be fine, Sam trusted that they would be. Dean had never failed him before, and Sam didn't think that he ever would. Other people came and went. Dean, though, he would be around to provide a quick joke, a rescue, an argument, forever.

Lulled to sleep by the sound of the television, distracting him from his own thoughts, Dean began to snore on the bed beside Sam. Sam looked over at him, and shook his head. His brother was finally sleeping after having been on edge all day. As he prepared to sleep, Sam hoped that tomorrow would be a better day.

An hour after Sam had fallen asleep, he was awoken by the sound of his brother's voice.

In his dream, Dean had finally reached Duluth. He wondered where Sam had gone off to. Too tired to care, he walked into his hotel room and plopped down on the bed. Closing his eyes, he grinned as he was finally able to get some rest. Hearing a strange rustling in the room, he looked up. He opened his eyes in alarm, but then closed them instantly. The light was too strong to take in all at once. Squinting, he saw it. He saw Jo. She was pinned to the ceiling, looking down at Dean helplessly. "Dean!" she cried. Her face twisted in agony. "Why, Dean? Why must this happen? Help me! Won't you help me?" Dean screamed for her. "Jo, don't...I'll get you out of there. I'll save you!" he yelled. When he discovered that he could do nothing but watch, mesmerized by the scene going on in front of him, he began to notice something not in his dream. He was being shaken.

"Dean! Dean, wake up!" Sam shouted as he shook his brother.

Starting to come to consciousness, Dean gasped for breath. He looked around frantically, not able to shake the feelings that his dream had produced. "Wh- where?" he asked Sam.

"Dean, you're awake now," Sam said with concern as he looked at his brother. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Dean was always the one who knew what was going on.

Dean's head fell against his pillow in relief. His breathing became regular again. He lay letting reality sink in. He hadn't really seen Jo pinned to a burning inferno on the ceiling. He was in the hotel room, and had only been sleeping. His attention turned back to Sam who looked at his brother with questioning eyes.

"Dude! Get off me!" he said as he sat up and pushed Sam away.

"You okay?" Sam asked as he watched his brother's every move suspiciously.

"Of course I'm fine. I just was sleeping, that's all."

"Dean, you had a nightmare, didn't you?" Sam asked. Even though his brother was a fully grown adult, he could hear the immature fear in his brother's voice, bringing him back to his childhood.

"Yeah, I did. It's nothing to worry about. Now, go back to sleep." The words he had so often said to his brother throughout the years came back to him. Sammy often had nightmares as a kid. Dean had become an expert at dealing with them. Go back to sleep, he told himself as he turned away from his brother. Dean had a feeling that he would not be sleeping peacefully anytime soon.