Thank you, everyone, for being so patient for this chapter. I don't know how many times I've written, erased, and rewritten this chapter but finally, I'm done with it.
This chapter is a little different than past chapters. Let me know what you think of these differences.
Sorry for the long wait. Enjoy!

The radio was loud, Dean's message of 'don't talk to me' clear. He didn't sing along with any of the songs, even when his favorite played. If I couldn't already feel what he was I'd still be able to tell by everything thing he was doing.

Dean always had a bit of a lead foot, so the speed we were going wasn't new, but every once in awhile he would slow just a little and reach for his phone. When that happened he would realize what he was doing, put his grumpy face back on, and speed up again. Not once did he look in the mirrors.

I knew he was kicking himself for what he had said to Sam. I was kicking myself for not successfully breaking up that fight.

"I'm taking off, I will leave your ass, you hear me!?"

"That's what I want you to do."

"Wait- guys- Sam just wait a minute. Dean you-"

"Goodbye, Sam."

I mentally shook off the memory for the time being. Sam was a big boy; he could take care of himself. Me and Dean needed to focus on the hunt at hand. I just hoped things wouldn't go sour with it being just us two.

"Come on, Dean," I whispered harshly. "Just let me take the lead for once. You're too distracted because you're worried about Sam." I followed Dean out of the little gas station in Burkittsville, Indiana.

Dean turned sharply to face me just before we got to the Impala. "I said no. I'm not worried about Sam; I'm worried that you're going to get in the way and screw it up." He spun back around and got in the car.

'Gah!' I just wanted to scream! I knew he was worried about Sam. I could feel it. There was also anger, but I think my own was drowning out his.

'You two need to stop arguing. Nothing good will come of it.'

'Yeah, well, tell that to the winner of the "#1 Asshole Award".'

'Dani, I'm being serious.'

'So am I.' I tuned out the voice and got into the passenger seat feeling irked that I had let Peyten and Jamie take my truck home.

The tension between me and Dean would just continue to boil.

I pressed the end call button and set down my phone on the dash. Crossing my arms, I glared over at Dean. He continued to stare ahead at the road and ignore me.

This man was infuriating.

I may be able to feel his emotions but that didn't mean I could understand him. I don't understand why we're so angry at each other. All I understand is that he is pissing me off.

"You still don't believe me, do you? Even after calling Oana and having her confirm what I already told you," I spat at him. "Why don't you trust me with this?"

Dean's knuckles turned white on the steering wheel. "Why should I?"

Seriously? "You've trusted me before. Back at that asylum you trusted me to protect those kids. You trusted me whenever I have said that I had a bad feeling about something."

"Yeah, well, I trust you with things I know you can handle. Small things, and messing stuff up." Dean sent a sarcastic smirk my way and all it did was piss me off even more.

A thought occurred to me just then. One that made me clench my jaw and growl, "Are you trying to blame me for you not being able to catch up to John. I've told you, Dean, I don't know what his plan is. I don't know where he is. I've been nothing but truthful."

I watched Dean work his jaw as he pulled to the side of the road. I had wanted to take another look at the creepy scarecrow before talking to some specialist on pagan gods, so we were only about a mile from the orchard. Of course, I already knew it was a Vanir deity but Dean didn't believe me or Oana.

The anger I felt was no longer boiling. Now it was like flowing magma, slowing getting warmer and warmer.

"Why should I trust you?" Dean growled back at me.

"Because I'm not lying!"

"How do I know that?!" he finally turned to me and his eyes flashed in fury. "You don't talk to me; you talk to Sam. You opened up to me once! That's it. I don't even know why I let you hunt with me and Sam. So explain to me why I should trust you."

'Calm down, Dani. Walk away and take a deep breath.'

I heeded the voice's advice and got out of the car. As I walked a little ways behind the car I heard Dean follow suit. I sat down and crossed my legs, getting ready to ignore Dean and calm myself.

His boots sounded not too far behind me. "Fine! Sit there and pout like a childish brat!" I listened to him retreat back toward the car. The trunk opened. "I'll gladly leave you too."

'What?'

My bag hit the ground.

"Goodbye Daniella."

'What?'

'Dani, no- kid, he doesn't- Dammit! Listen to me! Don't-'

'As always, everyone leaves me.'

'But why?'

'Because they get annoyed and tired, so they don't want me around anymore.'

'But Peyten. And Oana. Lauren and Jamie.'

'Someday they'll leave. Cast me aside and forget. They wouldn't be the first. Mom did. Kaitlyn did. My family did. And now Dean has. Sam will do the same.'

'Why does everyone leave me?'

'Because nobody cares about me.'

Hollow and empty inside, I didn't even hear the Impala pull away.

Sam POV

"Sam Winchester! Get your ass back to those two idiots before they kill each other! Or I will kill you ; I don't care if you're over a foot taller than me, I will do it!"

The line went dead after that. I shook my head in wonderment at the fact such a small girl could pick such big fights. 'You got yourself one hell of a friend, Dani,' I thought as I put the cell phone back into my pocket.

Something felt wrong. A slight pain began to emanate from my chest and it seemed to be harder to breathe. I pulled my phone back out and attempted to call Dean. He didn't answer. Twice. I tried Dani's number and received the same results.

Something was definitely wrong.

Twilight was just beginning to set in when I found her. Her artificial red hair, that had begun to fade again about a week ago, was easy to spot amongst the green and brown scenery. The moment I recognized the woman sitting there on the side of the road was Dani I slammed the brakes and ran to her side.

The first thing I noticed was that she was crying- sobbing actually. Dani's breaths were erratic and sounded like she was trying to breathe air in but she couldn't. I looked around wildly as if by some miracle I would see Dean or the car somewhere nearby. Instead, I saw Dani's purple duffle bag lying about ten feet behind her.

He left her. My idiot of brother left her.

No, I didn't have time to be angry at Dean. Right now Dani needed me. I knew she did her best to be strong for me and Dean, that she did her best to do all she could to make us think there was nothing wrong. But I knew. I talked with Peyten; I had seen the pills in her medicine cabinet; I wasn't blind . She was good, though. So good in fact that I think she's convinced herself that she's fine.

But Dani wasn't fine and Dean wasn't here to make her laugh. My brother was the one to do this to her, so it was up to me to pick up the pieces.

I knelt down slowly as to not startle her and whispered gently, "Dani." She flinched and curled further into herself. "It's okay, Pipsqueak." I knew she liked being given nicknames, I remembered how she grinned when I jokingly called her that almost nine years ago. Calling her by Pipsqueak had the desired effect. Dani raised her head and peeked over her knees. It hurt me to see her feeling so broken.

"Sammy?" her voice sounded so small. Like a child scared of talking too loudly. I could almost see the war in her eyes as her anxiety tried telling her not to trust me; that I would just hurt her, too.

Yeah, I was so going to kill Dean.

I had gotten Dani and her stuff into the car I had stolen and proceeded to save Dean from being sacrificed to Pagan god. It was now morning and I was making my way back to the car. I had left Dani there. Hopefully she had fallen asleep. I didn't want her to have to see Dean.

"Hey! Sam slow down!"

I ignored Dean and continued my brisk pace. "Walk the other way, Dean."

Dean jogged a little to catch up with me, "Woah, hold up, what's got your panties in a twist. We took down that thing without a hitch."

I did give him a warning. He just refused to heed it. Without a second warning, I quickly turned and swung. My fist connected with his jaw and sent him reeling back. Damn did that feel good.

"What the fuck, Sam?!"

"How could you do that? You left her ! You did exactly what she trusted you not to do. I thought things were going good, you two hadn't argued since Lawrence. Clearly, I was wrong." I walked away from Dean, not bothering to wait and see his reaction to my outburst.

I guessed Dad had it right, keeping them apart all those years.

As I drove toward Minnesota I noticed something about Dani. Whenever I would think of what Dean did and felt my anger take over me once again Dani would whimper and her sleep would become restless. It happened every time.

Was Dani able to sense my mood? I mean, I knew she could sense spirits and energies, so other people's' emotions wouldn't be too far fetched. Only one way to know for sure without waking Dani and asking her.

So I called Missouri.

"Hello, Sam. What can I help you with?"

Of course she would know it was me. "Hey, I'm going to cut straight to the point. Is Dani an empath?"

"Yes, she is. I was wondering when you would figure it out. Did something happen?"

"Just Dean being an idiot."

"Sam." I flinched at Missouri's stern tone.

"Don't worry, it's nothing I can't fix."

"Be careful with her, Sam. She may be strong, but even bulletproof glass can shatter."

Peyten POV

I watched the water in the pan boil and the tea bags swirl around. I knew Auntie wouldn't drink it, but at least the smell of comfort would be there. As soon as Sam had called me I got to work setting up Auntie's 'den'. New sheets on her bed; extra pillows; and the full soundtrack from her favorite video game ready to play in her radio.

I heard the front door open and watched Sam carry Dani to her room. It hurt to see such a strong and amazing woman feel like she was weak. She wasn't, though. Auntie was always so strong. She was my hero. As far as I'm concerned, my aunt is the hero that at the end of the day always saves the day without a care for themselves.

Before following behind Sam I left the stove and went to go get Auntie's baby blanket from the dryer. She may be almost 25, but having known her my whole life, I couldn't fault her.

She's 'Auntie' because that's what I've always called her. But she is so much more than that. Dani is like my big sister; she was a mother when I needed one; and my best friend through my entire life. She may only be four years older than me, but she seemed so much older than that.

I brought the blue blanket into the large bedroom and laid it front of Auntie where she was on her bed. She slowly reached out, like her arm was heavy and her muscles weak, and pulled the warm fuzzy blanket to her chest.

Her blue eyes, made even more vibrant due to her crying, looked dull and lifeless as she looked up at me. "Thank you," she barely whispered.

I smiled as best I could and leaned down to hug her. "I love you, Auntie."

A car door slamming shut sounded from outside and I figured it was Dean. I left Sam setting up Dani's radio to meet Dean. I crossed my arms and waited for the door to open. When it did he didn't seem to be surprised at me standing there. "Why did you do it?"

"Not going to punch me? I'll give you a free shot." Dean brushed past me when I didn't take his offer. I knew he was heading to Auntie. The two were like connected magnets that someone was trying to pull apart; it would work for a little while, but as soon as they were let go the magnets would pull back together.

"Dean," I reached out and stopped him, "just leave her alone for right now."

The man my Auntie loved so much spun on me and yelled, "That's what got me into this mess!"

"I know. I'm not telling you to stay away; just for right now let Sam fret over her and let me get her to the point where she can function again. She's probably lost all trust in you." What I said was like cold water splashed on his fire. Dean suddenly looked defeated. I could tell he wanted to know how to fix this. I didn't know if he would succeed, but I knew it was definitely worth a try. "Dean, what you did is very similar to what my Dad, uncles, and their wives did to her. They left her alone and told her to not come back. She's probably reliving all those memories at this moment. She loved them unconditionally. Even though they forced her to grow up quick and treated her like she was older than what she was: she loved them. And they threw that love away because Auntie wanted to find her mom. They don't understand, but I do. Auntie, deep down, is still that little girl who just wants her mom." I was crying by the time I finished my rant.

I let Dean go as he rushed back out the house.

Dani POV

Days passed in a blur. Somewhere in that timeframe, Sam brought one of the many friendly strays from outside to cuddle with me. The orange tabby was currently laying at my feet purring away.

Peyten was in town, grocery shopping, and I could hear Sam walking around upstairs. I didn't think of where Dean was. I didn't care.

I knew I couldn't lay here forever, but the hollow feeling just wouldn't go away. No matter what I did to make me happy again would work. Everything felt like too much effort. Being able to feel Sam's constant worry and Dean's distant tension made it worse.

'Dani. Dean didn't mean it. He was angry and worried, so he lashed out.'

'I don't believe you.'

'I know. I don't blame you.'

I heard the bedroom door click as it opened. I feigned sleep hoping whoever it was would think I was asleep and leave me alone. A loud sneeze broke the silence of my room.

So Dean finally came to see me? Not that I cared.

"Damn cat," he mumbled and I heard his footsteps as he approached the bed. I stayed relaxed if I did he would leave. He didn't, though. I felt him sit on the bed. With being so close I could easily feel what he was feeling at that moment. It was exactly what I was feeling.

Was it possible for our connection to work backward and he feel my emotions?

Dean broke me from my thoughts when I felt his hand grab mine. I refrained from flinching and pulling away.

"I'm sorry. I won't leave you, Dani. I promise."

Dean, you went and fucked up. BIG TIME. Does anyone hate Dean just a little bit after this chapter?
And we got viewpoints from both Sam and Peyten! Yay! That was a fun change of pace. Now you guys know some things that Dani won't even admit to herself.

Don't forget, I've started a tumblr for "Red Like Cherries"!