Yes, I am alive, just to alleviate any concerns to the contrary, I've simply lost myself in work recently. It's not a grand promotion, basically I have more work and thousand times more distractions, it's seriously amazing how many people will start talking to you even while seeing you're on a phone call... I am sorry for this delayed update, not only because I don't want you, my wonderful readers, to wait too long, but also because I am just sorry I haven't had time and wish I did. I'm sorry if this seems "piecey" but I've honestly been writing it for two weeks, mostly before bed, sometimes under the influence of alcohol, don't judge okay, my job has eaten my soul. BUT remember, any of you who are afraid my mood or job or life dictates these characters I swear that's not the case, I have this plotted out just little to no time currently to write it, but I'm not a character in this story, when I write them I just listen and watch- only in a little bit of a stalkery way...
Welcome new readers! And Thank you to my reviewers! You make my day every time I see a comment :) I get hung up on a lot so pretty much every review follows that and instantly makes my day better lol
Bryan was in the library, bent over a large book at a table with several, empty, energy drink cans around him when Morgan entered. He didn't look up as she slowly ascended the stairs, wishing he'd look at her and wondering why he wasn't, afraid she'd pushed him too far away. Morgan didn't feel the urge to run to him for comfort, but she wasn't feeling that urge towards her brothers either, though she didn't want to lose Bryan and was afraid she already had. Her heart, brain, soul, every bit of her was fighting inside, unsure what her true feelings even were anymore.
"Hey," Morgan said softly and Bryan looked up quickly.
"Hey," he smiled a little, pushing his chair back as he stood, "Sorry, I didn't hear you come up, I'm really into this."
"No worries," she shook her head, "They're settin' up a movie. Did you wanna join?"
"I, uh," Bryan tried to hide a grimace, but Morgan saw it clearly as his gaze flickered towards the massive volume, "I'm workin' on somethin', but thank you f'r'the invite."
Her heart sank and Morgan nodded slowly, "Okay," she peered at the open book on the table, but Bryan quickly tossed his notebook across the pages, "What're y'workin' on?"
"Nothin' much," he shook his head, "Nothin' I wanna bring up yet, not 'til I know."
"I could help," she offered, but Bryan was already shaking his head.
"Not with this," he insisted.
"Wow," Morgan scoffed and turned to leave the library, but a gentle hand on her arm turned her back towards the handsome young man.
"I'd love your help," he said earnestly, "but I'm researchin' everything I can on that bitch who took you. Even if you can handle it, I can't, I don't want to be worryin' the whole time about what you're thinkin', 'n how it's affecting you. I'm sorry, I know that's shitty, but I just-"
"Bryan," Morgan stopped his rambling and waited until his brown eyes were fixed on hers, "You're right, while I can handle some research, I don't want to right now. I can't scry Dagon, thinking more about her is just gonna make me angrier than I already am."
"Why, uh, I mean I'm not against it, just curious," Bryan stumbled a little, "but why can't you scry Dagon?"
Morgan scoffed lightly and rolled her eyes, "She's powerful, more powerful than me, if I focus my spirit on her, she might feel that presence, and could potentially tear my soul from my body."
"Nope," Bryan shook his head quickly.
"Yeah," she chuckled, "obviously. And, uh, well I looked in on Phelan."
"How is Balto?" Bryan smirked, but Morgan inclined her head in confusion and he sighed, "Your brothers would get it."
"Sure," she smiled, "I couldn't get a look at him, he's in a cave somewhere hidden behind Angelica and Dill."
"Rugrats?" it was Bryan's turn to incline his head and scrunch his eyebrows together.
"Plants," Morgan said simply, shaking her head slowly, "Seriously, what is, never mind. They're witch deterrents, a wall of them, and that asshole was behind it, along with three of his Betas. I just wish I knew who died."
"Is it dangerous to scry them?" Bryan asked.
"No," Morgan shook her head, "just useless since I can't see anything."
"But if you scried all of them individually wouldn't there be one you'd see, nothing?" Bryan asked, quietly adding, "Like, y'know, Max, when," his words trailed off as Morgan nodded in understanding.
"You're right," she said, bring the conversation away from the sad memory of Asa Fox's death, "Let me get my stuff."
"Wait," Bryan said and Morgan turned at the top of the stairs, "Aren't you watchin' a movie?"
"Y'r'not," she shrugged.
"What're they gearin' up?" he asked with a conceding grin.
"Die Hard," Morgan said enticingly.
"Which one?" Bryan insisted, his smile growing.
"One, through Vengance," she couldn't help matching his expression as he neared her.
"That's a hell'uv an offer," he admitted, taking her hand and pulling her gently towards him, "but I gotta know," he raised an eyebrow and looked serious momentarily, "Is there popcorn?"
"Have you met my brother?" she giggled, leaning closer to his firm torso, remembering the warm comfort Bryan offered with a simple touch.
"In more situations than I'd liked to," he chuckled and brought his mouth down on hers tenderly for a few moments before pulling away, "but y'r'always worth it."
Her stomach twisted, she didn't deserve those words, but she forced her expression to stay and not reveal the sadness the intended compliment had caused.
"Hey, kids," Dean walked into the open room and both teenagers at the top of the library stairs turned to him, "Movie's startin'. Bryan, you joinin' us?"
Bryan glanced at Morgan and smiled before returning his attention to Dean, "Yes, sir, just gonna clean up real quick."
"Leave it," Dean shrugged, "Like y'r'not gonna go right back t'whatever you're obsessing over tomorrow."
Bryan chuckled lightly and nodded, gesturing for Morgan to go down the stairs ahead of him, she walked towards her brother, who jerked his head down the hall with a small grin.
"Grab a couple sodas would'ja?" Dean asked, clapping a hand on Bryan's shoulder and stopping the young man in his tracks.
Morgan sighed and tried to offer an apologetic grimace to Bryan, who looked like he'd swallowed a grenade, before turning and walking away down the hall.
Those lips were often on his mind, but when Bryan had the brief opportunities to kiss them, it was heaven. He was elated to find passion when he'd met his lips to hers, unsure how she'd react, but Bryan couldn't have hoped for better. He didn't need his hands all over her or hers him, he just needed to feel that fervor in how she kissed him back, and he had. It may have ended sooner than he'd liked, but the last thing Bryan wanted was to push her too fast, push her away.
Those lips and that kiss ran through his mind as Dean's hand squeezed on his shoulder and the older insisted his sister leave them. What the fuck had he done? Dean hadn't been in the room when he'd kissed Morgan, Bryan was sure of it. Right?
"What'cha workin' on, kid?" Dean asked, steering him back towards the library, suddenly Bryan wished it was about him kissing the man's sister.
"Just, lore, 'n stuff," Bryan thought hard as he was mostly pushed up the stairs and towards the table covered in books he'd been pouring through, "tryin' t'catch up, lot t'learn."
"Mmhmm," Dean raised an eyebrow at the young man as he let his shoulder go and pushed away the notebook over the open text with his other, "Huh, would'ja look at that," he smiked, "Demons."
"I'm just-" Bryan tried.
"Not just demons," Dean feigned shock as he plopped the large book his lap after scooting onto the table, "No, the big guys," he said lightheartedly while flipping a few pages, "Lilith, the first, the Knights and, shocking, the Princes of Hell, not that you'll find more in here than you will listenin' to a first hand account."
"I know," Bryan agreed, dipping his eyes to his feet, "I should've listened t'Crowley earlier-"
"Kid," Dean sighed, "If y'can't look at him without gettin' sick to y'r'stomach, trust me, I get it, I do, I still hate that limey sonuvabitch, but he's been, irreplaceably helpful on far more occasions than I'll admit to. A month ago, I wouldn't be offering the invitation, but now, now I'm insisting. You step up or I don't need you here, it's not a threat, I'm not mad at ya, really, and I see what y'r'doin' here," he gestured the book as he set it on the table behind him, "but you need to learn to use all the resources you've got, and, as much as I hate to say it, Crowley is one'a the best ones we have right now."
"I know," Bryan nodded, "Cas already reamed me about it."
"About what?" Dean furrowed his brow and Bryan realized the angel hadn't mentioned his and Claire's eavesdropping outside the kitchen.
"Just, y'know," Bryan shrugged, finding an appropriate version of the truth quickly, "he said the same thing, that we should'a been in there, I told Claire too, but y'know, she only wasn't 'cause I didn't want to."
"That's not entirely true," Dean shook his head and rolled his eyes, "Don't let her guilt trip you. And, wait, Cas, seriously, Castiel ripped into you?"
"I mean, yeah, kinda," he nodded, "Dude's scary if he wants t'be."
"He can be," Dean chuckled briefly before setting his serious eyes on Bryan, "I'm not tryin' t'be a dick here kid, and I know you just went through your own hell not that long ago, but Morgan's a mess right now 'n my priority is to get her better and kill those pieces of shit that are after her."
"That's what I want too," Bryan assured him.
"Good," Dean nodded, "I can't afford another emotional basket case in this joint."
"I get it," the young man laughed, "I'm done, promise."
"You in on this movie?" Dean jerked his head towards the stairs.
"I heard it was One, Two and Vengeance," Bryan joked as he led the way.
"I'm gonna make it to about the end credits of the first one," Dean chuckled.
Bryan and Dean walked down the hall towards Sam's room as the younger wished his promise hadn't been a lie. He'd have to step up, like Dean said, and learn to swallow his pride and hatred for the help it could sometimes provide, especially if his own plan was to work out, there would be no room for blind prejudice.
Morgan walked into Sam's room, deciding she'd check how many drinks were already in there before getting more, and rolled her eyes when she saw two beers and three sodas on the desk next to a large bowl of popcorn. Claire was reclined against the wall with her feet hanging over the bed and slapped the mattress for Morgan to join, which she did with a small grin, curling into the corner of Sam's bed and sharing the blanket with her best friend. Sam was flipping through the on-screen options with the remote and, while neither girl would speak up because he was very prideful of his technology skills, Claire and Morgan rolled their eyes at each other as he scrolled through the 'action' category instead of simply searching the film.
Bryan walked in with Dean behind him and the oldest quickly snagged the desk chair Sam was about to grab and flipped it around, straddling the backrest with a smirk.
"Jerk," Sam muttered, taking another few steps to grab a matching chair from the corner and plopping it loudly next to Dean.
Bryan looked lost for a moment with the only seat available being on the other side of Claire on Sam's bed, but a small jerk of both brothers' heads was enough invitation for Bryan to join the girls. Claire lifted the blanket in silent offering, but the young man shook his head, Morgan grinned, part of her wishing she and Claire had switched spots, but a larger part wishing she wasn't about to participate in a movie marathon. Bryan had been right about scrying the werewolves and now her mind was racing with the idea.
Die Hard wasn't one of her favorite films, but Morgan watched Dean mouth the lines just before they were said on-screen and it made her smile to see him enjoying himself. Half way through the first movie, the popcorn had been depleted to broken pieces and kernels mixed with salt at the bottom and Dean left to make more, insisting he'd seen the movie enough and they didn't need to pause it, which no one argued.
A few times, she thought she saw Bryan glancing at her, but, every time Morgan turned her gaze towards him, he was focused on the television.
"Anybody need a drink?" Sam asked after swallowing the last sip of his beer.
"I'll take a brewski," Morgan smirked, stifling a giggle at the narrowed eye glare she received from her brother, "Soda'd be great, thanks."
"Brat," Sam scoffed lightly as he pushed out of his chair.
"Bitch," Morgan mumbled after he left the room, earning a short laugh from Claire, but Bryan seemed indifferent, or at least unimpressed, by the exchange.
"Hey can we pause it?" Claire asked, throwing the blanket off, "I gotta pee."
"Sure," Bryan grabbed the remote off the desk and the intense scene halted on a rather awkward, yet hilarious, still of Bruce Willis.
"You know it's just a joke, right?" Morgan began after Claire left the room, "Dean's jerk, Sam's bitch 'n I'm brat. It's just like, sibling fun, y'know."
"Never had any," he shrugged, "but yeah, I get it."
"Hey, uh," Morgan dipped her gaze to the empty spot between them before slowly looking into his handsome, brown eyes, "I know I've been weird, no just listen," she shook her head as he opened his mouth to interject, "I honestly don't know where my head is, one minute I feel like me, the next I feel like a shell, but I want, I need you t'know, I, I still," her words trailed into a small smile, blinking her long eyelashes.
"Me too," he grinned, "Whenever, if ever, y'r'ready t'talk t'me about what happened, I'm here," he tipped her chin up with a gentle finger, leaning closer as Morgan shifted a few inches towards him, "My feelings have never changed, from the moment I saw you at that gas station, they've only gotten stronger."
"You were a bit of a dick at the gas station," she smirked, inching closer to his face.
"I was," he admitted with a small chuckle, "but it worked."
"Little bit," Morgan shrugged, her body shivering the moment his mouth landed on hers.
His tongue just grazing her lips before retracting, lips managing to be both hard and soft, Morgan felt herself melting at Bryan's touch. A momentary reprieve from the torment of emotions and thoughts, simply pleasure overtook as the handsome young man's kiss engulfed her senses.
"Sam are those cold?!" Claire's very loud question from the hallway split the two instantly, returning to their innocent positions.
"Jeezus, Claire, yeah they're cold," Sam sighed as he walked into his room, shaking his head as he set three sodas and two beer bottles on the desk, all of which he managed to carry with both massive hands.
"Thanks," she grinned and winked at Morgan and Bryan while grabbing a fresh can off the desk.
"You can think I'm stupid if y'want," Sam scoffed and nodded at his beer with his eyes locked on his sister, a moment later, the cap flew into the trash can, "Thanks, Brat."
"Anytime, Bitch," Morgan laughed and so did her brother, Bryan smiled.
"We ready f'r'the rest'a this movie?" Dean asked as he walked in with two, slightly smaller, bowls of popcorn, "I'm done sharin' with you snack thieves."
"Yeah," Claire rolled her eyes as she took one of the bowls from him, "we're the gluttons around here."
"Shut up," Dean joked, retaking his seat and setting his and Sam's bowl on the desk, exchanging it for his beer, Morgan didn't even allow him an opportunity to find a bottle opener before the cap zoomed into the trash bin, "Thanks, Sweetie."
"Sure, Dean," she returned her brother's smile and turned her attention back on the movie as Sam hit the play button on the remote.
Despite Dean's insistence he wouldn't make it through the first movie, both girls were asleep on each other half way through the second as the brothers and Bryan continued enjoying the film. None of them were keen on starting the third, however, and, as the credits rolled, they decided to call it a night.
"You take Morgan," Dean jerked his head at the bed with his eyes on Sam, "I'll grab Claire."
"I got Claire," Bryan said, sliding his arms behind the blonde's back and knees before they could argue.
Dean shrugged and tossed the blanket off his sister, carefully picking her up off the bed.
"Guess I'm just gonna clean up the mess y'all left in my room," Sam said, setting the cans and bottles in the empty popcorn bowl.
"Sorry, Sam, I can-" Bryan began, but Dean cut him off.
"He's jokin', kid," Dean shook his head, "Take Goldilocks t'bed, we'll see y'in the mornin'."
Bryan chuckled lightly, but rolled his eyes as he turned away from the brothers, carefully maneuvering Claire into the hallway and had to do a bit of a balancing act to open her door, but the young woman didn't stir. Carefully, he laid her in her bed, thankful she never bothered to make it and easily pulled the blankets from the foot of the bed up to her shoulders. Bryan brushed his friend's hair out of her face before leaving the room, closing the door silently.
The night had certainly not turned into what he was expecting. Yes, he'd been hoping for a moment alone with Morgan since she'd returned, but, as the hours had dragged on, Bryan had become nervous of her change in demeanor. It had been reassuring to hear her admit to the turmoil he'd been witnessing, but invigorating to know her feeling were still there, the passion in her kiss hadn't dimmed.
Somehow, all of it made him even more determined in his plan, knowing Morgan would hate him for it, at first, but once she understood his intentions were for her, for her family, she couldn't possibly hate him for that.
Thank you for reading - What'd you think?