Chapter 12 – Finale
Felicity spent the day before Karla's funeral, sitting in the middle of the lounge room floor, surrounded by boxes of photos. Each photo she looked at brought a memory flooding back.
There was the picture of both of them - large sombreros perched on their heads and fashionable cocktails in hand from their trip to Mexico. The next picture was of Karla surrounded by Christmas presents and wide grin plastered on her face and the photos went on and on and on.
At the sound of the doorbell, Felicity slowly got up and made slow progress to the front door. "I'm coming!" She yelled as the doorbell sounded again. She unlocked the door knowing who it was before she even opened it. After all, apart from the Police, Sam and Dean had been her only visitors.
"Hey." She said with a smile to the brothers. "Come on in."
"Thought perhaps you might need to go out for a while… y'know take a drive or something." Dean said, running his hand down her arm.
"You're both so sweet but you don't have to check on me every day. I'll be okay." Felicity said, heading in the direction of the kitchen. "Want a beer?"
"Wouldn't say no." Dean said as he followed her into the kitchen.
Felicity retrieved two beers from the fridge and turned to hand one to Dean. Instead of taking the beer, Dean grabbed her wrist "I need to know that you really are okay. We're not gonna leave town until I know for sure that you're gonna be alright."
The plastic smile on Felicity's face began to falter and crack. "In time, I guess I will be okay Dean. I'm not gonna lie and say – yeah! I feel great! Because I don't. For now, I don't even know if I'm gonna stay here in Kalispell. I might even go back to Seattle. But wherever I go, I'll make the most of it – I have to."
Dean took the beers from her hands and put them on the table. "C'm here." He said, inviting her into his strong arms.
She took up the invitation and was content to be held in Dean's arms – her face pressed against his chest. After several minutes, she broke away from him. "Let's go join Sam."
They spent the afternoon in Felicity's lounge room, drinking beer and talking.
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As Felicity opened her eyes the next day, her first vision was of Dean. He was lying next to her, watching at she slept.
"Good morning." He smiled.
"Hi there." She leaned forward and kissed him. "What time is it?"
Dean looked at his watch. "Just after 8."
The smile faded from Felicity's face. "It's time I got up and got things ready." She said as she sat up.
Dean grabbed her arm and pulled her back down onto the bed. "Relax, you've got plenty of time. Take it easy. Sam's coming by later and we'll all go together. Okay?"
"Honestly Dean, you and Sam don't have to do this." Felicity said, sitting on the side of the bed.
"No, we don't but we want to." Dean said, moving across the bed to kiss Felicity in the middle of her back which sent a small shiver through her body. Seeing the reaction, Dean began to trail kisses all over her back and then up to her neck.
"Okay, you win." Felicity said, turning around and letting herself be pulled back onto the bed by Dean. Once more, he began to cover her shoulders with small tantalizing kisses. "I swear Dean Winchester; if you don't go any further than this, I'm gonna go crazy!."
"Can't have a crazy woman in bed with me now, can I?" Dean smiled.
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An hour later saw Sam arrive with clothes for Dean to change into. Dean changed into his suit whilst Felicity also changed into her newly acquired black outfit for Karla's funeral. She hated wearing black.
Felicity sat at the kitchen table, hands wrapped around her mug of coffee. She looked up when Sam came into the room. He poured a mug of coffee for himself and sat down at the kitchen table opposite her.
"You okay?" He asked quietly.
She slowly shook her head. "I'm scared Sam. Really scared. I thought I could handle this but now I'm not so sure. Karla was the closest thing I have to a family. She's gone and I'm left here wondering what to do next. I feel like I want to just curl up in a ball and forget about everything."
Sam reached over and took her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.
They drove the short distance to the church where a small group of people were gathered out the front – George Radinski and Hayley Morrison from the Mansion, along with the Police chief, Roger Hillier and his wife Rita who also ran the coffee shop that both Karla and Felicity had frequented during their short time in Kalispell.
A few quick greetings were exchanged before they all made their way inside the church. Felicity sat in the front row between Sam and Dean. She reached out and clasped Dean's hand in her own and then also reached for Sam's hand – feeling secure between the brothers.
The service was short – Felicity didn't want a long drawn out service. She knew that Karla would have said that a long sermon was enough to put you to sleep. Afterwards, the small party made its way to the cemetery.
As they stood around the freshly dug grave, Felicity looked up and could see the Conrad mausoleum in the distance and gave an involuntary shudder. Dean followed her gaze and snaked his arm around her waist.
As Karla's casket began to descend, Felicity threw a single white rose onto the top of it and whispered, "Stay safe my friend."
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Felicity didn't slept much that night. She found it hard to shut down her thoughts and just sleep. In the end, she gave up and just lay there looking up at the dark ceiling and listening the steady sounds of Dean's breathing.
At first light, she climbed out of bed and went into the kitchen and made herself a cup of coffee. As she finished off the last of her hot drink, Dean came into the room clad only in a pair of jeans. He leaned over and kissed her lips lightly.
"Coffee?" Felicity asked.
"Uh huh." He said, sliding onto a chair.
Felicity began to make the coffee and with her back to Dean, she said. "Dean, you're leaving today, aren't you?"
"Yeah." He replied.
Felicity could feel a part of herself want to run over to Dean and throw herself at him and scream that he couldn't leave her but she knew that this wouldn't happen. She was too strong to let herself get emotional like a silly school girl. Dean and Sam had a job to do and it wasn't her place to get in their way.
When she finally got the courage, she turned back to Dean with coffee in hand. "Here ya go." She said, placing the cup in front of him, running her hand up his arm and walking out the room. She made it to the bathroom and locked the door before a sob escaped her. She grabbed a towel and pushed it to her face, stifling the sobs that were continuously escaping from her.
After several minutes, she managed to get herself under control. "Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" She hissed at her reflection.
There was a tap on the bathroom door, "Felicity? You okay?"
"Yeah Dean, I'm okay. Just gonna have a shower, won't be long." She replied reaching for the hot water tap and turning it quickly.
A little over an hour later, Sam arrived.
"Well then, I guess this is goodbye." Felicity said as she walked to the front door. Without turning around, she walked outside and down the path to where the Impala was parked. She stood staring at the car, her arms folded as if warding off the cold.
Sam came and stood in front of her. "Felicity, you take good care of yourself, okay?"
"I will, I promise." She smiled up at Sam. "Gimme a hug." She said and threw her arms around his waist.
Sam released her and leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. He then climbed into the front seat of the Impala.
Dean was closing the boot of the Impala as Felicity turned to him. He closed the distance between them and reached for her hand. "Think you'll ever be back this way again?" She asked.
"You just never know." Dean smiled. He encircled her in his arms and softly kissed her.
Before he could let her go, she hugged him fiercely. "You and Sam just keep yourselves safe, you hear me?" She said.
"I promise." Dean replied.
Felicity released Dean from her hold and gently pushed him backward. "Go on, get out of here." She smiled with tears in her eyes.
Dean climbed into the driver's side of the Impala and started the engine. With a wink, he pulled the car out into the street.
"Dean!" Felicity screamed at the big black car as it slowly gathered speed. The brake lights flashed and the driver's door swung open. Dean climbed out and ran the short distance back to where Felicity was standing in the middle of the road.
The embrace and kiss was deep and emotional. "We'll be back." Dean whispered into Felicity's ear.
"You'd better." She replied and she once again released him.
Dean walked back to the car and before getting back into the car, he raised his hand to her. She did likewise as the tears freely ran down her face.
"You ready to leave?" Sam asked Dean with a sideways glance and a smile.
Dean glanced into the rear vision mirror at Felicity as her frame got smaller. "This ain't a bad little town, y'know. Might even be back here again some time soon."
Sam smiled broadly, knowing what Dean really meant was that they would definitely be back through Kalispell again sometime.
END
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