For now, everything was perfect.


Dean thought he was dreaming when he woke up. His arm was asleep, circulation cut off by the head of curly dark hair on top of it. That was fine though. Without shifting the bed, he peeked under the covers at their naked bodies, just to confirm that it had been real.

A part of him was screaming to get up and take off like always. But this wasn't like always. This time, he hadn't been trying to get into her pants since they'd met. Well, he had been at first, but after that, he'd kind of lost that burning need to get laid and been comfortable just being whatever they were.

Now, he was drawing a pro/con chart in his head. That was something he should've done before they'd slept together, but better late than never. Pros: Rhia, the stability, the roof over his head, it was safe, he might have a future with her. Cons: Dad was gonna call eventually, hunting, something would probably come after him eventually, he'd have to tell Rhia about the supernatural sooner or later and she'd probably think he was crazy, his short life expectancy.

He couldn't put Rhia through all that. It wouldn't be right of him. This had been a mistake and he had to fix it.

Rhia woke up a few minutes later, planting a gentle kiss on his chest.

"Mornin'," she hummed, leaning up to kiss his jaw. Kissing her back softly, he realized that Rhia had wrapped him around her fingers to a dangerous extent. If he didn't try to make this work, he'd regret it. She might end up hating him later, but as far as Dean was concerned, it was worth it.

They got breakfast at a little diner nestled in between two shops and talked about movies while they ate. To Rhia, it was just a regular breakfast. To Dean, it was one of the most incredible things he'd ever done.


Another week passed in a blur of work and laughter and lovemaking. Dean laughed at himself for calling it that, but it wasn't just sex anymore. There was more to it now. He was happy here.

Then his cell phone rang.

"Dean, I have a case for us," no 'hello', no 'how have you been', straight down to business.

"Dad?" Dean asked, partly out of fear, partly out of shock. How long had it been since they'd spoken?

"Of course," he scoffed. "Who else would be calling you?"

There was a brief pause while Dean tried to formulate an answer, but John wasn't interested in it.

"I'm up in Maine. Looks like a vengeful spirit or two, and a nasty one at that. I'm gonna need some help so drive up."

"Right," he sighed. "Hey Dad, I'm kind of busy at the moment. Can I call you back?"

"Well, whoever she is, make it quick and head up." Dean flinched at the harshness of his father's words. Was that really what John thought of him? Just hunt and fuck?

Dean wanted to argue. He wanted to say that he'd found someone and that he was sick of hunting. He wanted to scream that he had his own life and that he was his own man, but all that came out was "Yes Sir."

Though he'd never admit it to anyone, after he'd hung up, Dean cried.


When Rhia got home a few hours later, dinner was cooked but Dean wasn't waiting for her on the couch like he normally was. For a second, she was terrified that he'd left, but the stove was on and Dean was almost obnoxiously afraid of burning her house down.

She found him sitting on the bed, writing what looked like a T-chart on a flyer from some Jehovah's Witness. The only words she could see from where she was standing were "DAD" and "RHIA" on opposite sides of the line.

"What's that for?" she asked suddenly. Dean jumped, accidentally drawing a stripe of ink across the paper. Crumpling it up, she tossed it in the garbage by the desk and grinned at her.

"Nothing serious. Is it five already?"

"Yup," Rhia nodded.

He raised an eyebrow, jumping up from the bed and kissing her mouth, "Food's done. Let's go eat."

Dinner went the same as it did every day. They ate and talked about their days, then Rhia cleared the dishes and served up the dessert.

"So what's going on with your dad?" she asked around a forkful of pie. Dean hesitated.

"Nothing. I haven't talked to him in a while."

Rhia glared at him, pointing her now empty fork at his face, "Don't lie to me, Dean. If you don't wanna talk about it then say that, but don't ever lie to me."

"How'd you know I was lying?" he asked, slack jawed. Rhia shrugged.

"I have my ways. Plus I caught a glimpse of that T-chart you were writing earlier. So, do you wanna tell me what's going on?"

Dean sighed. He really did want to tell her. He wanted her opinion and her validation, but he also didn't want her to think he was crazy. Ah, what the hell? It was gonna have to happen eventually.

"My dad did call," he confessed. "He's up in Maine and wants me to come help him out with some business."

"Why is that such a problem?"

Another sigh. "Look, Rhia, there's some stuff that you don't know about me. There's a lot you don't know, actually. If I help him, there's a chance I won't come back."

"What?"


By the time he'd finished stammering out an explanation, darkness had fallen and the ice in their drinks had melted. Rhia was having a hard time wrapping her head around it.

"If monsters are real, then how come nobody ever sees them?" she argued.

"They do," Dean explained, a little more confident now. At least she hadn't called him crazy yet. "All the time. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if you'd served a couple at that diner you work at. Most people just rationalize it as a trick of the light or they just don't notice at all."

Her head was spinning. Dean didn't seem crazy, and he seemed completely calm, but the stuff he was saying didn't make sense. She had to find a way to figure out if what he was saying was actually true.

"Show me," she decided. Dean raised his eyebrows.

"What?"

"Show me these monsters and ghosts," she repeated.

"Rhia, I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why not?"

"Honey, it's dangerous work," it was true, but Rhia didn't know that. She was really starting to think that he might just be nuts. "You could get killed or arrested or a thousand other things could happen to you."

Rhia shrugged, unfazed. If she kicked him out without proving that he was nuts, she'd never forgive herself. "All those things could happen to you too. You don't see me telling you not to go."

"I went on my first hunt at eleven," he argued. While he was glad she hadn't kicked him out yet, this was almost as frustrating. "I started training at six. Do you even know how to shoot a gun?"

Giving him the biggest are-you-kidding-me-right-now look he'd ever gotten, Rhia reached into the bottom of her purse and pulled out a .45.

"My dad was a cop," she said simply. Dean would've asked about the "was", but the look in her eyes silenced him. Not the time.

As she got up to clear the dishes and load them for the night, she ended the discussion, "I'm coming with you, end of story. And don't even think about taking off without me."

Naturally, that's exactly what Dean tried to do. He told her they'd leave in the morning, then snuck out when she fell asleep. It sucked, but he thought he was in the clear. And he was, until his girlfriend slipped into the shotgun seat while he was loading the trunk.

"Going somewhere?" she asked as he shut the driver's side door.

"Jesus!" he yelped. "Dammit, Rhia, don't do that!"

"I told you not to even think about taking off without me. What I meant was 'don't bother trying'."

"Go back to bed," he tried to order, but his heart wasn't in it and it sounded more like a plea. Rhia responded by tugging her seatbelt into the buckle.


That's a really weird ending. I'm sorry. I just apparently planned too much and would rather break it up and save all the extra stuff because right now my brain isn't writing for what is currently relevant, it's only coming up with stuff for 50 to 60 chapters from now *crosses fingers and hopes that this story stays alive for that long*

Don't forget to favourite, follow and review. Reviews make me happier than a whale at a plankton farm! (ooh that was really bad. i'll have a better one next time i promise.)