Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural
Warning: NOT A HAPPY STORY.
A/N: The lines mean either time change or POV change.
Sam's POV
Consciousness returned slowly to Sam. The first thing he felt was a cool, dry breeze embracing him in a ghostly hug. It wasn't cold enough to bother him a lot, but it was still uncomfortable. The solid rock on his back didn't help either. He didn't know how long he'd been out - based on how stiff he was he guessed less than a day. He could hear birds chirping so he was definitely outside. He finally blinked his eyes open and looked around. It was early morning, the sun peeked over the trees shining beams of light into the clearing where he lay. As his vision cleared he turned his head and saw old, run-down buildings in what could only be an abandoned town.
He tried to sit up but was overtaken by a wave of nausea. He took a moment to let the dizziness pass then tried getting up. The stabbing sensation in his hip caused him to fall back abruptly and groan. Please don't let it be reinjured. He reached into his pocket to get the pills he'd been subscribed to but found nothing there. He patted down all his pockets with no luck. Not even his phone. He tried to think back to how he got here, but only noticed a dull throbbing forming in the front of his skull.
He looked around for something to lean on with no luck. He lowered back to the ground and half-crawled, half-dragged himself to a nearby porch. Sam situated himself and glanced around again. It seemed deserted. "Hello?" he called out to the emptiness. He stilled and listened for the hint of a sound.
A minute later he heard quick, heavy footsteps approaching around the side of a building. He turned and prepared himself to fight if needed, even though he knew he was in no condition to. The source of the footsteps was a tall black man with army clothes on. He looked about the same age as Sam and had a thin layer of sweat covering his face. The man had a knife in his hand and had it out in front of him in a defensive posture. "Who are you? Where am I?" he demanded of Sam.
Considering the knife looked sharp, Sam said, "Take it easy. My name is Sam. I'm from Palo Alto, California. I woke up here about 5 minutes ago. I have no clue where I am. What's your name?" He kept his voice level so he wouldn't be perceived as a threat. He wasn't about to reveal where he lived or anything else that could be used against him.
After a moment of scrutinizing him, the man said, "Jake. I woke up about an hour ago. I've been trying to find other people or food or something. It's empty, man." Jake put the knife down and held out a hand to help Sam up.
Sam didn't take it. "Yeah, do you mind grabbing me something to lean on?" Jake looked at him puzzled. "My hip had, uh, surgery a week and a half ago..." Jake glanced down at his lower body before nodding and turning away. He returned a few minutes later with a long sturdy stick.
Once Sam was standing, albeit unsteady, Jake helped him hobble into the building they were in front of. There were 3 rooms: the kitchen looked semi-functioning. The living room contained two couches and an end table with a broken leg. He doubted the restroom was equipped with a flushing toilet. Sam settled down in one of the chairs, wincing slightly at the pain radiating down his legs.
Jake opened the fridge and found some bottles of water. He tossed one to Sam and the men were quiet for a moment as they guzzled down the water. Jake sat down and told Sam his story of how he had been in Afghanistan and somehow woken up in the abandoned town. Sam listened, trying to regain his own memory. The pain in his skull increased every time he tried to remember. "What about you? What's your story?" Jake asked.
"Well, I remember being in my apartment after a trip and going to bed but that's it," Sam replied. He didn't think it was pertinent to go into detail about the "trip" he had gone on with his brother. That was too much, too soon. Especially when he didn't even want to think about the details. Jake nodded and looked away. They sat in silence, both pondering on the circumstances and what to do next.
A shriek split the air. Both men jumped in their seats. Jake recovered faster and mumbled a quick, "I'll look." He jogged out the front door to find where the scream came from.
Sam waited still as a statue and listened for any sign of what was going on. He hardly dared to breathe. He couldn't hear much for a good ten minutes. Then he heard Jake talking to someone and footsteps approaching. When the door opened again, Jake held the door for a young woman who was a couple years younger than Jake and Sam. She had shoulder length, mousy brown hair tangled into knots. Her eyes were puffy with tears and snot leaked from her nose. She looked flat out terrified, but for some reason, Sam couldn't bring himself to believe it. He couldn't put his tongue on it, there was something just... off about her.
She let out a sob and sat down in the chair next to Sam. Jake rushed to get her a water bottle from the fridge and grabbed a blanket from one of the couches in the living room. She drank greedily from the water bottle. Jake sat down across from her and Sam. They were silent as she continued to cry. Finally, when her sobs weren't quite so violent, Sam spoke up, "What's your name?"
She jumped a little at his voice and looked at him. "A-Ava," she hiccuped.
"Hi, Ava. My name is Sam. How long have you been here?" Sam offered a small smile of encouragement.
"I-I don't know!" she exclaimed, her voice high with anxiety, "I was just in bed with my fiancé and I woke up here."
Her lips were quivering and Sam knew she was close to hysterics again, so he relented. "Okay, it's okay. Um, where are you from?"
Ava let out a harsh breath. "We wake in some sort of- ghost town, and- and you wanna know where I live?" she asked with a wild, tearful gleam in her eyes.
Sam put out a reassuring hand. "No, I mean, yes, I-" he took a breath. "I'm trying to figure this out too. I mean, we were all put here for a reason, right? It can't be coincidence that we all just happened to wake up here. There must be some sort of connection." Sam turned to Jake for support. The other man nodded, keeping his expression guarded.
Ava looked from Jake to Sam before saying, "Peoria, Illinois." She gasped. "My fiance! Our wedding! What day is it?"
Sam thought about it for a moment. "I went to bed on September 3rd, so I would guess it's the 4th."
The news seemed to break Ava. She collapsed on the table and broke down again. The only words Sam could make out were, "Wedding... August 28th…. Where… I WANNA GO HOME!" Jake put a soothing hand on her back and rubbed small circles. Sam couldn't bring himself to believe this was real. The whole crying thing seemed almost rehearsed.
Sam grabbed his stick and stood. "I need some air," he mumbled to Jake as he passed.
He stepped outside and took in his surroundings again. The sun shined in the sky, almost blinding him with it's brilliance. He squinted his eyes for some sort of clue that could tell him where they were. His gaze landed on a bell with a tree engraved on it off to the left in what looked to be the center of town.
Immediately, Sam recognized where they were and rushed inside. Ava was still weeping in her arms; Jake turned and gave him an exasperated face. "We're in Cold Oak, South Dakota," Sam informed them.
Before Jake could say another word, they heard two voices coming from outside. "Hello?" "Is anyone here?" Sam stepped outside and saw a man under 21 in a baggy jacket and pants. Next to him, a goth looking girl wandered around the bell.
"Over here!" Sam called out. They jumped and spun around to face him. "What're your names?"
The man hurried towards him, the girl trailing behind him. "I'm Andy," the boy said, "this is Lily. We woke up next to each other in one of the buildings over there." He pointed towards the bell. "Where are we? What's going on?"
"Why don't you guys come in so we can all talk together," Sam replied. He pivoted on his foot and lost his balance. He collapsed in a heap on the ground. "Fine. I'm fine," he moaned through clenched teeth. Andy offered him a hand, which Sam took after a moment of indecision. Grabbing his stick, he limped back inside the building. His hip was definitely reinjured.
Upon entering, Ava and Jake looked up towards the two new additions. Ava with puffy, red, teary eyes. Jake with a more calculating gaze. Ava was still whimpering a bit, but seemed more in control. Jake removed the hand on her back in favor of getting into a more protective stance. "Who are you?" Jake barked out, his hand sliding towards his knife on the table.
Andy, oblivious to Jake's threatening demeanor, offered a silly grin. "I'm Andy and this is Lily. We woke up near each other in one of the buildings across… wherever we are." He turned towards Sam. "Where are we? What's happening? And who are you?"
"We were getting ready to discuss that right now," Sam answered, "I'm Sam. That's Ava and Jake." Sam pointed at the weeping girl and a stoney-eyed Jake. "I think we're in Cold Oak, South Dakota. I recognize that bell out there from, er, research." Sam stopped himself just in time from bringing up his past. He didn't think it wise to explain everything to these strangers. He hoped his cover-up would do.
No one commented on his near slip up, but Jake narrowed his eyes with suspicion. Ava's occasional quiet sob shook the silence. Jake stood up and muttered, "I'm gonna go find us some more food."
But before he could go more than a step, Ava grabbed him and said, "wait! I… I want to come with."
Everyone looked at her like she was crazy. Jake gently pulled her wrist off him and nodded. "I'm coming too," Sam offered immediately. There was something off about Ava and he didn't think it was a good idea for just the two of them to go.
Jake rolled his eyes and said, "Anyone else?" Andy and Lily kept their mouths shut. Jake continued, "Good, then you two can check out the rest of this house and see if you can find anything useful. It's getting dark, so pillows and blankets would be handy. But make sure you don't leave this building. I don't want to have to search for you guys in the dark. Got it?" They nodded, eager to stay put. "Good." He signaled for Ava and Sam to follow.
Disabled as he was, Sam kept up rather well, though he had a feeling they went at a slower pace for him. When they reached the nearest structure, Jake faced Ava. "I want you to look for some dry sticks and logs around this building. Anything we can use for a fire, put in a pile nearby. We're gonna be just inside here, if you need anything just holler okay?" Ava smiled hesitantly and started searching. Jake and Sam walked inside together. The structure had only one huge room with a bunch of aisles and a long counter near the door. Sam guessed it had been some type of store at one point. They sifted through the cabinets lining the walls and pulled out anything they could use. They started a pile on the counter and split up to search the room.
Now, he was finally alone with Jake, he decided it would be the prime time to voice some of his concerns. "So, what do you think about Ava?" Sam asked, careful to keep his voice even. He didn't want to betray any emotion that might give away his instant of distrust towards the girl. He wanted an honest answer from Jake as opposed to him trying to appeal to Sam or think Sam was plotting something.
"I think she's a manipulative bitch," he answered without hesitation. Sam's mouth jerked into a quick smile as Jake continued, "Come on, the way she cried and spoke? Clearly rehearsed. She may have fooled the other two, but there ain't no way that any of what she said or did was real. She's too melodramatic."
Sam nodded, very pleased with Jake's observations. Ava had put on a pretty convincing act and he wasn't sure Jake would catch onto it. As he headed down another aisle, he said, "I'm glad you agree. But if you knew she was acting, why were you being so nice?"
"Because I don't want her to know that I know she's a fake," Jake said, tapping his index finger on his temple with a knowing grin. "It's all about deceiving the deceiver. I learned how to tell if someone is lying through my training with the Army. One of the most obvious signs is exaggeration. She cried too much and for too long for it to have been real. I didn't want her to know that I had caught on though. If she thought I would expose her for being fake, then she may have done something drastic. We don't know this girl or what she's hiding. Until we do, it's best that we just play along."
Sam knew without a shadow of a doubt Jake was an ally. He wanted Jake on his side for many reasons, one of which being Jake was strong and could crush him in a fight. Additionally, he seemed to have a good head on his shoulders. "You're absolutely right. We need to keep our heads down and hope to figure out her plan. For all we know, she could be part of the reason we're here. But should we tell Andy and Lily?" Sam felt a certain reluctance to tell them, in case one of them slipped up and revealed their knowledge to Ava. He hated keeping them in the dark and possible danger though.
Jake voiced a similar opinion and they reached the conclusion to keep quiet for now. "What do you know about this place? What did your 'research' say?" Jake asked with a tinge of cynicism.
Sam shrugged. "Just that everyone left because the town was so haunted." He gave him a sheepish grimace. "I didn't want to scare the others more than they already were."
Jake nodded. "Fair enough. Anything else? Do you know if there are any other towns nearby?"
A clatter sounded from Sam catching his foot on a box of empty glass jars."Nothing for miles. Just woods." Sam sighed. "I wish I knew more, but I just don't. I wish I could tell my brother…." How sorry I am.
Jake didn't catch onto the last part and said, "Yeah, I don't have my phone or anything. I wonder if the others have anything."
They fell into a comfortable silence, searching the store for a while longer. As the sun disappeared behind the trees they gathered their findings and left. The provisions might support everyone for a little over a week, but then they were screwed.
"Ava?" Jake called looking around for the smaller girl. There was no answer. He yelled her name louder. Nothing. Sam and Jake looked around the building. They met back in front with no success. "AVA!" Sam shouted as loud as he could, trying to reach for his knife.
A stick snapped behind them. The two spun around, and Sam lost his balance again, toppling over and spilling all the cans in his arms. "I'm here, I'm here," Ava said, approaching from the side of a couple structures over.
Sam glared at her from his spot on the ground. "Why didn't you answer when we called?" he said in an accusing voice.
Ava put her arms around herself and exclaimed, "Who knows what's around and ready to jump out at us."
Jake nodded and offered a hand to Sam, not taking his eyes off the girl. "Well, you don't have to worry about that with us around." Ava offered a small smile.
"Where's your pile of wood?" he asked.
"Oh - uh, well, I looked around but couldn't find much," she spluttered. "It's really dark and I couldn't see anything very well."
"I get it," Jake replied, putting a hand on her shoulder. "We'll try again tomorrow. Let's head back for now." As he led Ava away, he cast a quick, exasperated look at Sam.
Sam nodded and took up the rear and they walked back to the building they were shacked up in. He wondered what she was up to while they were searching the house and who wouldn't be making it through the night.
A/N: An update has finally arrived! I will give you guys the ending I have so far, but please keep in mind I AM NOT DONE. This chapter (among others) will be expanded upon. I'm about to graduate college and can't leisurely write a whole lot, but I do work on this every chance I get. I'm doing my best. As always, please feel free to let me know what you think. I love all the constructive reviews.