The quiet room carried a thick tension that Alice couldn't cut with her sharpest knife. She couldn't believe what her sister had just said to her. Angel's words echoed through her head. I think it's time to sell the house. Alice's veins ran cold and her brain had to restart to make sure this was actually happening, that this wasn't a twisted dream. "Sell the house? The house we grew up in? No way."

"We don't use it," Angel crossed her arms and stared into her sister's fiery eyes. "We pay for it with counterfeit money. We should let another happy family use it." The words barely made it out of Angel's mouth without her voice cracking.

Alice looked at her sister as if she were insane. Her heartbeat rang in her ears as her blood pumped through her body faster. "That's our house. Dad wouldn't have wanted us to sell it. Stop being so selfish and think about how I'd feel."

Angel straightened up and her jaw tightened. "How you feel? What about how I'd feel? I've given up everything for you. I've always looked out for you. When has it been all about me? It's been all about you!"

Sam and Dean walked in and the wave of tension hit them. Alice didn't notice them and kept arguing. "I didn't ask you to give everything up for me! I could easily take care of myself. I don't need you," Alice grit her teeth and exhaled heavily. "You needed me. I'm the one who protected you. I'm the one who kept you altogether. I'm the one who sacrificed everything, so don't go twisting the truth to make yourself look like the hero in this story. Because you are not."

Dean rushed to Angel's side and raised his hands slightly, "Calm down. You both need each other, okay? End of story."

"That's not true," Sam added. He made his way over to stand by Alice. "Alice can take care of herself. She is strong enough to defend herself. She doesn't need a bodyguard following her around like a lost puppy."

Alice nodded and leaned against the wall. "See, Sam's the only one who gets me around here, and he's your boyfriend. How does it feel to be completely alone from everyone you hold so dear?"

Dean quickly butted in, "She has me. I'm like her older brother. I know how she feels and what she's going through. She's done her best for you, Alice. Given up hours of her life and opportunities she could have had for you and your family. Don't you dare say she hasn't."

Angel clenched her hand into a fist and forced herself to stay put. "I've given up my life for you and would physically in a heartbeat." Her heart slowed and ached at the answer to the next question. "Would you do that for me?"

Alice hesitated and thought for a moment. All that could be heard in the room was her heavy breathing. Sam gave Angel a puppy dog look, but then saw Dean, and returned to glaring. Alice answered, "I would, but I would regret it." The sound of Angel's heart breaking could be heard from a mile away. She nearly collapsed from the pain that had struck her heart. Angel's eyes darkened and it seemed like the life in her got sucked out. Alice continued, "Mom and Dad would want us to stay alive and protect people, but you can't do that on your own. You're too dependent on me."

Sam turned to Dean and says, "You know what life she could've had instead of becoming a hunter? A great one. One that she could be proud of. She could have been anything she wanted. A teacher, a doctor, a lawyer. No. Angel needed her sister, so Alice didn't do it. She didn't become something great like she had always aspired to be."

Angel knit her eyebrows together. "What about me?" She pointed at herself and moved a step towards them, "My one job is to protect her. Do you think I had any aspirations? I did. But I left them to protect my little sister like I was told."

"I did all of that for you and you know for a fact that I wanted a little brother more than anything in the world. I didn't anticipate our mom dying. I didn't expect our dad to go crazy." Dean rubbed the stubble on his chin as he contained his despair. "I didn't want this life. I was forced into it."

Alice yelled out in anger. "You could've left at any time once you came of age! But no. You had to follow orders. Then we," she pointed at herself and Sam, "got sucked back into it." She turned to Angel and stated, "Getting back together and fighting that war is what got our parents killed in the first place. If you hadn't recruited me, then our parents wouldn't have fought. They'd be alive right now."

Angel pinched the bridge of her nose and her dull blue eyes gazed at her little sister. "You can blame me for everything you want. It doesn't make a difference who's to blame. What happened, happened and we can't change it."

Silence filled the room for a few short seconds until Sam whispered out loud, "Maybe we should go back to our old lives."

Dean cocked his head slightly and gazed in confusion at his brother. "What? We separate again? What if something big happens? Then we'll die without backup."

Alice nodded, "Maybe that's the way it's gotta be."

Angel and Dean's eyes began to water simultaneously at the thought and their hearts broke in half. The jagged heart shape crumbled into pieces and the sounds of breaking glass was almost audible. Dean attempted to grab Angel's arm and said, "Let's get out of here."

Angel jerked her arm away and ran out of the room, slamming the door behind her. Dean took one last look at his brother and Alice before running after Angel as she stomped away.

Alice adjusted herself and calmed down. "You know, I'm in the mood for a run. Let's go for a run." She grabbed Sam by the arm and marched out of the room. They jogged for the start and then proceeded to run another few miles. Alice could feel her heart pounding against her rib cage and her blood pumping, screaming for rest, but she didn't want to. It was so great just venting and running her emotions off. Alice enjoyed it more than she should. She lost her focus when Sam spoke.

"Maybe we were too harsh on them."

Alice quickly remarked, "No, we said what needed to be said. They said all of that. We don't need them and they don't need us."

"That's not true and you know that," he replied out of breath.

Alice screamed out in anger, "We can split apart. We don't need them. They're the ones that wrecked our lives and you're here defending him? What's wrong with you?" She sped up and ran faster. Her feet were pounding against the pavement and her breathing was staggered.

"Alice, slow down!" Sam urged her. He sprinted as quickly as he could, but he still failed.

Alice didn't bother to listen to him. He was siding with her sister, the one who was wrong, the one who tore apart her peaceful life! Angel was the one who yanked her back into this life of hunting. It wasn't her choice. After their parents died, she didn't have a choice. It was hunt or be hunted. Alice was on a lot of hit lists, so even if she went back to her normal life, she had the possibility of putting her future family in danger. This was all Angel's fault. Why would she let her force her back into this way of life? She could have easily said no and went on. Angel was the one taking orders, not Alice. Alice didn't want any part of it. Her heartbeat skyrocketed and her body temperature was rising a little too fast to her liking. Her muscles were tensing up and all Alice could think about was crawling into a ball. She felt like she was in a tight space and the walls were inching closer by the second, enclosing her in her room of death, even though she was in an open area on a street. She collapsed onto the street as thoughts scratched at the back of her head, tormenting her muscles into giving up. You've only let your sister down again. Telling her that you should split up or that you'd regret dying for her? Way to go, dumbass. Now she won't even want to be with you anymore. How could anyone trust such a monster? Alice clutched her chest and tried to make the thoughts go away. She was hyperventilating as if she couldn't get air into her lungs correctly. I told my sister that I didn't need her. That I didn't care what happened to her. That I would regret giving my life for her. If she told that to me, I'd be broken. She only followed orders. It's who she is. All she's doing is protecting me with her own life. Why should I count that as a terrible thing? Most people would kill for that. Tears clouded her vision and fell like rain down her cheeks. Her nose began to get stuffy and she sniffled. I told my older sister that I didn't want her. That I didn't want her in my life. Her mind raced with thoughts of the possible future she would have if she didn't make up with her sister. She'd be alone with a small family of her own in a small town where no supernatural would know where she was. Angel would be off kicking some ass and taking names on her own or with Dean. She'd probably die within the first year or two because of some simple supernatural being. Alice would have to live with the small guilt she would feel because she left her sister alone and let her down. She had always vowed to have her sister's back, but to what extent? Risking her private life? Risking any happiness she could ever have with a normal life? A life where she didn't have to lie constantly about who she was or what she does for a living. She has Cas now, but if she leaves Angel and Dean, will he stay with them? Will he even care for her anymore? Will he leave with her? She hadn't thought of that before. She was only thinking of herself here. How could she do that to her family and her friends?

Sam kneeled next to her and cleared the hair out of her face. "Alice, are you alright?"

Alice couldn't take it and cried as she hugged him close, "I have to apologize. I have to say sorry to my sister." She repeated it over fifteen times before he got her onto her feet. She was hysterical and couldn't shake it off. It was the only time in her life that she felt vulnerable to her core.

Sam didn't cave in as easily, but he knew how she felt and why. He needed his brother too. It didn't matter what arguments they had. They were family. Sometimes, that was enough to solve matters. It was them two against the world. Without Dean, Sam would live a simple, yet lovely life. It wouldn't be the same. He couldn't perceive the world as he had before with such innocence. Sam knew what was out there. Even if both of them separated, they were bound to find each other once again on a case. They'd both continue to hunt because that's the only lifestyle they've truly had that's worked out for them in the long run. They had become ghosts to everyone they knew and loved, by which whoever was still alive. No one truly knew Sam and Dean Winchester outside of their friendship circle. They were homicidal maniacs who were taken out by a single cop in a small town. They mass murdered people in different cities. All they could do now was hide behind the fake names and badges they created, forever being overshadowed by everything they once knew and had to become. Without Dean, Sam wouldn't have made it this far. He would have died or turned dark side. That would have only been what yellow eyes and Lucifer wanted. Dean always had his back, which Sam should be thankful for. He held Alice in his arms, calming her down, and thought to himself for a moment. By saying we should split up, did that mean Angel and I should break up? He shut his eyes tightly and held his jaw in place. Is that partly why she was so broken? Did I pile that information on top of the crap that Alice gave her straight up? Not only did he have to apologize to Dean, but he would have to apologize to Angel. After rethinking everything Sam and Alice said, he agreed that it was necessary to save the relationships.