AUTHOR'S NOTE: I never would have imagined that this little plot bunny that I came up with (a little girl finds out that Dean Winchester is her dad, then is camping later and there is an attack of some sort and Sam and Dean rescue her, and Dean says, "OMG that's my kid!") would go very far...and here we are on the 30th chapter! I love Charlie and I know all of you do too! Thanks to all of you who have followed, favorited, messaged me, and take the time to write a review - we writers love reviews because it lets us know that people are reading our writing and that it is being enjoyed (or not)! So... my muse has once again veered off into a completely different direction than I had intended, and once again I'm letting her take the reins...I hope you enjoy!
A loud crash of thunder woke me up suddenly. I lifted my head up and heard rain falling, hard, and I wasn't sure where I was for a moment. Then there was another crash of thunder, so loud that the walls shook, and I shrieked and scrambled off of the bed. I threw myself at the person sitting on the sofa, feeling tears start.
After a second I realized that it wasn't Daddy or Uncle Sam and I pulled back from the flannel shirt I had rested my head on. It was Grandpa John's lap that I was sitting on!
I looked up at him and said, "Oh," in a small voice.
I felt shy suddenly and started to get off of his lap, but then there was another crack of thunder and a bright flash of lightning, and I yelped. He put his arms around me.
"What's the matter, you don't like storms?" he asked me.
"No, the thunder is scary, an' the wind and rain makes it sound like a haunted house!" I said, and I looked around the room. "Where's my Daddy? And Uncle Sam?"
"They went out for a while. They'll be back later."
"Where did they go?" I asked.
"They went to play pool and have some beer."
"Why didn't they tell me?" I started to cry suddenly. I didn't like waking up and them not being here!
"You were asleep and they didn't want to wake you, I said I'd keep an eye on you so they could go out. It's all right."
Thunder rumbled overhead and I gasped a little bit. He squeezed my shoulder. "There's nothing to be scared of, it's just a storm. It will blow over soon."
I put my head on his chest. "I don't like it," I mumbled.
"Well, I'm here with you, and nothing bad is going to happen. Try to go back to sleep."
"I can't, 'cause of the noise. It's too scary." I turned my head and looked at the t.v. "What are you watching?" I asked.
"A ball game," Grandpa John said.
I sat up. "Can we look for a cooking show or something?"
"No, I'm watching this, and you're supposed to be asleep."
"But baseball is bor-ing!" I protested.
"I happen to like it. If you're going to sit here and complain, then you should go back to bed." He finished the bottle of beer that he was drinking.
"I don't want to," I whined. "I'm scared of the storm."
"You can sit with me, but you have to sit quietly," he told me. "No more complaining."
There was another long rumble of thunder and I tensed up. Grandpa John rubbed my back. I leaned on his chest again and closed my eyes. Then I opened my eyes and sat up.
"I, uh, hafta go potty," I said. I got off of his lap and walked to the bathroom. When I came back out, he was at the little fridge getting out a beer for himself. I walked back over to the sofa and picked up the remote, and started to flip through the channels.
He came over and sat down next to me, and then took the remote out of my hand. "What did I say before, huh? I'm watching the game right now. You should to be in bed, asleep." He caught my eyes with his, and gave me a stern look. After a long moment, I dropped my eyes and looked down.
"I'll let you sit up with me, but you need to mind me, little girl," he said. He patted his thigh. "Put your head down and close your eyes."
I laid down and put my head on his leg, and felt him rubbing my back again. I closed my eyes, and realized that the rain was only a very light patter now. It took me a long time, but I did fall back to sleep.
The next morning it was gray and damp outside. We couldn't go to the playground because it was very wet from the storm. I was feeling tired and grumpy, and Daddy and Uncle Sam looked tired too. We went to a diner for breakfast, and it was very busy and loud. It took a long time for our food to come and they messed up Daddy's order and didn't bring refills of coffee when Grandpa John asked for them. He had to ask three times.
By the time we got back on the road, all of us were feeling out-of-sorts and cranky. I had been looking forward to getting to run around on the playground before we left, but the rain from the night before had prevented that. We were in the car for a couple of hours and I started to complain. I didn't like being in the car for a long time over and over, every day. I wasn't used to it, and it made me tired in a different way than running around did.
"Daaaddyyyy, can we stop somewhere?" I asked him.
He glanced back at me. "You need a rest stop?"
"No, I just wanna get out. I'm tired of this!" I huffed and looked out the window.
"No, kiddo, we've got to keep going right now. Play your 3DS," he told me.
"Don't wanna."
"Want to listen to some tunes?" Daddy reached for the radio.
"No, I'm not in the mood," I said.
"Read one of the stories in your workbook and then we can go over the vocabulary words," Uncle Sam turned to look at me.
"I don't want to," I grumped.
"Then do a page in your math book."
"Don't want to do that either! I'm tired of doin' schoolwork! I'm not in school!" I frowned at him. I didn't want to work right now!
"Read one of your books."
"No! I'm tired of bein' in the car! I wanna get out!" I said loudly, kicking my feet and hitting the seat with my fists. My kicking feet knocked against the back of Daddy's seat, and he said sternly, "Hey, no kicking my seat!"
Uncle Sam frowned at me and then faced forward.
"You're just going to have to wait until we stop," Daddy told me.
"Why don't you color, or draw something," Uncle Sam suggested.
"You draw something!" I yelled suddenly, tired of him suggesting things. My temper flared, and I grabbed a handful of crayons and chucked them at him.
"What th-" the car swerved as Daddy ducked away from the crayons flying through the air. "Jesus! What the hell, Charlie?" he yelled, glancing back at me.
"Charlotte Anne! That was very dangerous!" Uncle Sam spun around to glare at me. "You do not throw things in the car, especially not up front!"
I noticed that Daddy was slowing the car down and pulling over to the side of the road.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"I told you, no more warnings," Daddy said in a hard voice. "Immediate consequences." He parked the car and got out, and then opened the back and got in next to me. He unbuckled my seatbelt and started to pull me down over his lap. I fought him and tried to pull away.
"Daddy I'm sorry!" I said quickly.
"You're gonna be sorry after I'm done with you," he growled, and he pulled me down and started to spank me.
"You do not throw things in the car, ever! You do not do things that are dangerous! You could have caused an accident!" His hand kept falling as he lectured. "If you ever do something like that again, I will get out the paddle and paddle your ass until you can't sit down, do you understand me? And knock off the tantrums!"
"I'm sorry Daddy, I'm sorryyyyy!" I howled, and he continued to spank me, smacking the very tops of my thighs as well as my butt.
He stopped spanking and let me up. "Get all your drawing stuff together," he said, picking the bag up. Uncle Sam turned and handed back the crayons I had thrown, and I put everything back in the bag.
"You've lost this for the day. Now I suggest you find something else to do, something that is quiet, because I don't want to hear another peep out of you until we stop. You got it?"
I looked up at him and nodded, tears pouring out of my eyes. He took the bag from me and got out of the car, walking around to the trunk and opening it. When he came back to the car, he had a blanket and a small pillow. He put them in the back and said, "I suggest you try and take a nap, and maybe that will get rid of some of your bad attitude. I'm not going to put up with it much longer. Get buckled."
He got into the front and I buckled my seat belt and wiped my face. It was the first time that Daddy hadn't comforted me after a spanking, and I felt sad. I guessed he was still mad at me. I had almost caused an accident because of my bad behavior. I pulled my legs up in front of me and put my arms around them, resting my head on my knees and crying quietly.
When I woke up, I was leaning against the door of the car, with the pillow tucked between my head and the window, and the blanket over me. I realized the car wasn't moving. I sat up- Daddy and Uncle Sam had gotten out and were standing at the back of the car, talking to Grandpa John. I unbuckled and got out of the car, walking over to them slowly. We were in the parking lot of a restaurant. I wasn't sure what kind of mood they were in now, or if anyone was still mad at me.
Grandpa John looked at me, and Daddy and Uncle Sam turned to me.
"I'm sorry," I said, and ran to Daddy, throwing my arms around his waist.
"I'm sorry too," Daddy picked me up and hugged me. "I'm sorry I got angry at you and spanked you like that, I should have waited until I was calm. You shouldn't have thrown the crayons, but I don't like to spank you when I'm angry."
"I'm sorry I threw a tantrum and the crayons," I said. Daddy kissed my cheek and squeezed me. "We're okay now."
Uncle Sam came over to us and I looked at him. "I'm sorry I threw the crayons at you," I said sheepishly. He reached for me and I went to him, and he took me in his arms and hugged me too. "We had a rough morning, but it's okay. Are you ready to eat some lunch?"
"Yeah," I said.
We walked into the restaurant, and Uncle Sam carried me in and set me down when we got inside. In the front part there was a tall fountain, and a sign that said you could throw coins in it and make a wish.
"Can I make a wish?" I took Daddy's hand and looked up at him.
"What?" he asked. I pointed at the sign.
"Oh," he said, "Maybe later, okay? Let's eat right now."
"Can I have lots of money?" I asked.
Uncle Sam chuckled. "For what?"
" 'Cause I want to make lots of wishes!"
All three of them chuckled at that. "We'll see," Uncle Sam said, ruffling my hair. We were shown to a table and given menus. Grandpa John got a phone call and got up to walk outside. He was gone for several minutes.
He came back in when the waiter was taking our orders. He ordered a sandwich and a large coffee to go.
"Where are you going?" I asked him.
"Well, I got asked to help a friend of mine who is...investigating something in the next town over. I'm going to go help him, it should only take a day or so, and I'll meet up with you at Missouri's." He smiled at me and tweaked my nose. "You keep behaving and I'll take you out for ice cream when we meet up again."
"And candy too," I reminded him.
"What?" he frowned.
"Remember, you said it's the grandparent's job to fill their grandkid up with candy and send them back to their parents- and you still haven't done that with me!" I told him. The three of them laughed again.
"How do you remember this stuff?" Grandpa John shook his head.
"Charlie always knows what she wants," Uncle Sam said.
The waiter appeared with a styrofoam box and large cup, and handed them to Grandpa John.
"All right," he said, "I'm off. I'll see you in a couple of days. Be good, you three." He got up and left, and then the waiter was bringing our food. After we ate, we used to rest rooms and then started to leave. I pulled on Uncle Sam's hand.
"Wait, I need to make a wish!" I reminded him when we were at the fountain.
"Oh, right," he stopped and put his hands in his pockets.
"Come on, Charlie, let's go," Daddy said.
"But you said I could make a wish!" I protested.
"I said maybe. We need to get back on the road," he said sternly.
"Here," Uncle Sam said. "Here's two pennies, make 2 wishes, okay?"
"Thanks!" I said, hugging him. I closed my eyes and made two wishes, and then opened my eyes and looked up at him. "I'm done!"
"All right then, let's get this show on the road," Daddy said. We got back into the car and drove for a couple of hours. I read some of the stories in the workbook but didn't practice spelling the words with Uncle Sam.
The car started to make a funny noise. Daddy had had the radio on, and he turned it off and opened the window so he could listen to the engine.
"It's not the timing belt," he said to himself, "Could be the alternator." He glanced over at Uncle Sam. "Next town we come to, I'm going to stop so I can take a look at the engine."
"Fine with me," Uncle Sam said.
Daddy found a large gas station that had a convenience store attached that was big enough that it even sold some stuff for cars, like oil and some small parts.
Daddy parked at a pump and opened the hood and spent a few minutes looking things over. Uncle Sam walked me to the rest room and then we came back to the car.
It was very busy with people getting gas and also stopping to buy things from the little store. Daddy had put the nozzle in the gas tank and was leaning on the car, when a woman with long dark hair came out of the store. She had 2 huge bags of ice in her arms.
"Dean... Dean Winchester?" I heard her say. I saw Daddy turn, and he walked over to her. They began to talk, and then he took a bag of ice from her and they walked over to a car. After they had put the bags of ice in her front seat, he hugged her. She got into her car and he came back to us. He closed the hood of the car and put the nozzle back in the pump.
"I just saw an old friend of mine," Daddy said as he got into the front seat, seeming excited. "I had no idea she lives here now. We're going to stop over for a visit, okay?"
"Who is it?" Uncle Sam asked.
"Lisa...you remember, about 10 years ago... you were in Orlando with Dad wrapping up that banshee thing. That loooong weekend I spent with her... she's a yoga instructor..."
"Oh," Uncle Sam said. "We're going to...stop for a visit?"
"Yeah, she said she's having a party today, we can get some free grub. And I can, you know, catch up with her..."
We followed her to a neighborhood with big houses, and Daddy parked at the curb. There were a few houses still being built down the street, and realtor signs all over. We got out, and Daddy walked over to her car to carry a bag of ice for her.
"Lisa, this is my brother, Sam, and my daughter, Charlie," Daddy said. "This is Lisa, she's an old...friend."
"Oh, Sam, I remember Dean talking about you," Lisa said. She had warm brown eyes. She looked at me. "And this is...Charlie? Well Charlie, I hope you like lots of noise and bouncy houses, because we've got a big one out back and it's a very noisy party!"
As we walked up the sidewalk with Lisa, the front door opened, and a boy came onto the front porch. He had short dark hair and brown eyes.
"Hey Mom, Gavin just got here, and his present is huge!" he said excitedly.
"That's great, honey," Lisa said. She turned to us. "This is my son, Ben, he's turning 10 in a couple of days."
Ben looked...familiar. He was wearing a t-shirt that said AC/DC and a plaid shirt with the collar turned up.
"You like AC/DC?" Daddy asked him.
"Yeah, classic rock is the best!" Ben said with a grin.
Lisa rolled her eyes. "I have no idea where he gets that from," she said with a shake of her head.
Ben looked past us. "Is that your car?" he asked.
"Yep, '67 Chevy Impala," Daddy said proudly.
"Sweet ride!" Ben said, his grin getting bigger.
"Thanks dude!" Daddy said.
I looked at Ben, and then I looked at Daddy, who was grinning back at Ben. They had the same smile. Then I realized why Ben looked familiar. He looked a lot like my Daddy!
We walked into the house and went into the kitchen. Lisa opened a bag of ice and poured it into a large cooler.
Daddy was looking at Ben like he was studying him. "H-how old did you say he was?" he asked.
"He'll be turning 10 on Tuesday," Lisa said.
Daddy looked at Uncle Sam, who had raised his eyebrows, and it was like they were doing that talking without words thing again. Daddy handed Uncle Sam the car keys.
"Why don't you go get us a room somewhere...we might be here for a day or two, I want to look over the car better and...I might need to.. figure some things out," Daddy said.
"All right...give me a call," Uncle Sam said. I went over to him and hugged him, and then he left.
"Hey," Ben said to me. "Want to see the bouncy house? It's got a basketball hoop inside!"
"Okay," I said, and I looked at Daddy.
"Go ahead," he nodded at me.
I started to follow Ben to the back door.
"Don't forget to take your shoes off!" Lisa called after us.
Ben and I got into the bouncy house. "Hey, if we bounce together, we can go so high that your head will hit the ceiling!" he said excitedly. "Wanna try it?"
"Sure!" I said.
"Grab my hands!" he reached for me and I took his hands, and we started to jump together. As soon as our hands touched, I knew...somehow I saw it, I saw Ben being held by his Mom as a baby, and I saw a connection to my Daddy...I knew... my Daddy was also Ben's Daddy!
Our heads bumped the ceiling of the bouncy house just as I felt the knowing in my head, and I let go of him and fell backwards with a yell.
"Hey, are you okay?" he asked as I tried to sit up.
"Yeah, I just...don't feel good...need a minute..." I mumbled, and I scrambled out of the bouncy house and walked quickly over to the table where all the food was.
I leaned down and put my hands on my knees, breathing heavy. How could that be, that my Daddy was also Ben's Daddy? I didn't understand it.