Title: Come What May
Fandom: One Tree Hill/Supernatural
Genres: Angst, Romance, Crossover
Pairing: Dean/Peyton
Spoilers: One Tree Hill, "The Leaver's Dance"; Pre-Supernatural
Disclaimer: Unfortunately I don't 'em. Wouldn't be able to keep my hands to myself if I did. The title comes from the Air Supply song of the same name. Air Supply, Cynthia Weil and Tom Snow own the song.
Summary: This is how Dean and Peyton's love affair began. Prequel to Split Second. It isn't imperative that you read that to understand this, though.
Author's Notes: Takes place before the Supernatural pilot and at the beginning of the summer following One Tree Hill's The Leaver's Dance. In this realm Cassie never existed and Jake never came back. Plus, Sam's still at Stanford and Brooke's off in California.
Come What May: Chapter Two
After the band had finished their performance, Dean had expected the club to vacate, but Haley assured him that the party would go on for hours. He had stood idly by as Haley and Lucas were joined by numerous of their friends, whom he was introduced to one by one. Unfortunately he couldn't recall any of their obscure names.
When everyone around had suddenly disappeared, Dean was left to his own devices. Haley had scurried off to the bathroom and Peyton had come to collect Lucas and the guys for some heavy lifting. She hadn't asked for his assistance and that had bothered him a little. Though, he had no idea why.
He had gone back to the bar, careful to ignore the sinful smile of one of the other female bartenders. He hadn't had a chance to make an ass of himself because Haley had come to his rescue, leading him back to the dance floor.
"Thank you," he had told her as music began to filter through the speakers.
"No problem. I doubt you'd want Peyton to find out that you were flirting with one of her coworkers," Haley teased him as a D.J. took the stage.
"I don't know what you're insinuating," Dean shouted at her over the loud music, "But I'm not sure I like it."
Haley laughed as Lucas and Skills sidled up beside her. "Go ahead and play dumb, then."
"Play dumb about what?" Lucas inquired.
"Nothing," Dean blurted out as Haley quickly followed with, "Dean's fascination with Peyton."
"I do not have a fascination with Peyton," he insisted.
Haley, Lucas and Skills begged to disagree. "It's okay, Dean. I mean, it's not like you're attracted to Fergie," Haley giggled.
Talk of Dean's attraction to Peyton quickly died down when he threatened to vacate the dance floor. Haley would hear none of it, though.
He had remained on the dance floor dancing, though it wasn't of his own free will. Haley had threatened to break off limbs had he moved an inch. When he had looked to Lucas for help Lucas had simply shrugged his shoulders, instructing Dean to move his feet to at least allude to dance. So, he had.
Dean had never been so relieved when a slow song finally came on which gave him the opportunity to head to the bar as people partnered up. Haley had tried to grab him, but he quickly moved out of her grasp, pushing Lucas toward her instead.
"That was some nice moves you were displaying out there," Peyton teased him as he slid onto a stool at the bar.
"Laugh it up all you want, but I've exceeded my dancing quota for the next century. I'm all tapped out," he told her as he ordered another beer.
Peyton frowned as she handed him an ice cold bottle. "Pity. I was just about to ask you to come out there with me." Smiling at Dean's look of surprise, Peyton told him, "I've been stuck behind this bar all night. I need a break and since Haley's dancing with Lucas… you're the only dancing partner I see in sight. I mean, unless you don't think your reputation can sustain one slow dance."
He quickly shook his head, setting his beer down on the counter. "Uh… no," he answered quickly. "I think it'll be good through another song."
Peyton led him out into the crowd and into the middle of the dance floor. Awkwardness ensued as they slid into dance position, her arms around his neck, his draped around her waist.
Dean felt like a grade school student at his first dance. A hundred emotions swirled through him in waves: nervousness and awkwardness accompanied by a weird twinge of calmness as well.
It wasn't that he couldn't slow dance. If there was a dance that he did well it was slow dance, but being in such close proximity to Peyton…
Before his thoughts could fully form in his head, Peyton interrupted him, asking, "So when you aren't, you know, driving cross-country to find yourself, where are you? Where's home?"
He'd left home behind a long time ago. He stopped having a home the night his mother was murdered. But he didn't tell her that. Instead, he coughed out, "Kansas."
Oh, what a tangled web of lies he weaved… But it wasn't a lie. Then again it wasn't a whole truth either.
"Kansas," she echoed. "You're a long way from home."
"If you can even call it that."
Peyton eyed him with concern as his cocky smile resurfaced. But it was his eyes… His eyes betrayed him, mirroring a sadness that Peyton knew all too well.
She suddenly knew that there was something there, a hidden depth that Dean didn't let very many people see. He was broken, and for a moment that gave her pause.
Despite the fact that she'd dealt with her fair share of guys with issues, a part of her longed to know what or who it was that had turned Dean into the tortured man that stood before her.
But the real question was, did he trust her enough to unleash his inner demons on her? There was more plaguing him than just his mother's death, that was for certain.
As Peyton's arms tightened around his neck, Dean fought hard to react to her. She was captivating his senses, spinning his body into overdrive. The last thing he needed or wanted was a weekend romance and the longer he spent in Peyton's company the stronger his attraction to her grew.
So what was he doing? He was crazy. This was crazy. He shouldn't be here. He shouldn't be doing this.
He shouldn't be doing this with her.
And what exactly was he doing?
Dancing, his conscience informed him. But he knew from past experience that dancing was far from innocent and the way that his fingers curved around her waist did not go unnoticed, neither did the second his fingers grazed along bare skin when her shirt slipped up…
Well, that could only lead to trouble.
Dean took a step back, disengaging himself from Peyton's arms. "I should probably go."
Confusion knitted her brows. "Go?" she mimicked him. "Now?" She was honestly confused. She thought that things were going pretty good. They had spent the better part of the night engaged in polite conversation. She wasn't that sucky of a conversationalist, was she? Had she stepped on his toes? Did she smell funky? He had a girlfriend. That had to be it. A guy that looked like he did had to have a girlfriend. Of course! That was it. When she started asking about home he remembered. Duh.
Dean didn't know what to do… or say. She was only seventeen. And he… never got the chance to be seventeen. He was never afforded that innocence and there was no way in hell that he was going to strip Peyton of hers. If she got involved with him… if he let her care about him she would only end up hurt.
There were facets of his life that he had to keep to himself and a relationship built on a web of lies wasn't really a relationship at all. Leading Peyton on and hurting her in the long run was something that he couldn't contemplate doing. Hurting her was the last thing that he wanted to do. So he would go and protect them both from the risk of expecting too much from something that was doomed from the start.
"I'll uh… I'll see you around, Peyton."
Then, he turned and walked away, catching the attention of Lucas and Haley as he made his way toward the door. Haley ran over to meet him, begging him to stay. He had thanked her for inviting him along, but he'd feigned tiredness, an excuse that she accepted without further inquisition.
With one last look at Peyton, he made his leave.
Dean hadn't been able to sleep which was why he was walking the River Walk at seven o'clock in the morning. After he'd gotten back to his room sometime after midnight, he had showered, and readied himself for bed, willing thoughts of Peyton out of his head.
Unfortunately that didn't happen. Even after had had settled in bed and watched Striptease on TV, he still dreamt of Peyton.
He wasn't used to being so overwhelmed by his feelings. He had never had this happen before. Normally he would have the typical one night stand and slip out of bed before she woke and knew he was gone.
Perhaps that's where he'd gone wrong.
He had talked to Peyton. He had actually had a conversation with her that went beyond what was his preferred beer choice and whether he liked blondes or brunettes.
He had felt comfortable enough to tell her parts of his family history, something that he'd never done with anyone ever before. In turn, she had unloaded some of her family woe onto him and aside from protecting others from the supernatural, he felt useful, like he had helped her in some way as they exchanged war stories.
As he sipped his coffee watching the boats move through the harbor, Dean's thoughts returned to the night before and to the way that he'd made his abrupt leave.
He had been a jackass, but what else was new?
In his defense it had been a knee-jerk reaction to all the feelings bubbling up inside of him. He wasn't ready to face them, nor did he want to face them at all. Peyton was a child, one that he couldn't get involved with. And it wasn't just about her age. Sure that did have a lot to do with it but also who he was and what he did had a lot to do with his decision to keep his distance from her.
He was only in town a short while and it wouldn't be fair to her to string her along knowing that in a few days time he would be leaving. He wouldn't dream of hurting her in that way. She had been hurt enough.
From what she told him, she was used to being left in the dust. Her mom had died when she was young. Her dad was constantly leaving her for work. Her best friend had abandoned her for the summer and her last boyfriend had left her as well. He was sure that there was more to Peyton's story than she was letting on, but that could be his own guilt in giving her a modified version of his life story.
But just because he couldn't sustain a relationship with her, did that mean he had to rebuff her friendship as well?
Yes. It was better this way, he told himself. It was better that he didn't get anymore involved in the lives of Haley, Lucas and Peyton than he already was. He didn't want to further complicate their lives and he would do that if he got too close to them.
Especially Peyton.
He had found himself thinking about making frequent trips to Tree Hill just to be able to be with her. He was wanting to rearrange his life to make room for her and that was not a good thing. It would only get him into trouble and make him weak.
And he had no room for weakness in his line of work. He couldn't afford to have someone depend on him and as much as he longed for something that resembled roots, he couldn't put that burden on Peyton's shoulders.
But still there was that one tiny part of him that second guessed all of his readymade decisions. Part of him couldn't help but wonder what if…?
Dean was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't even notice that he wasn't alone, not until he turned and nearly toppled over Peyton in the process. "Peyton! What… what are you doing here?"
"I was going to see you actually." She held up a white paper bag with Karen's Café emblazoned on the front. "I come bearing muffins from the café. I figured maybe you'd be interested in breakfast. My treat."
He smiled at her. It was such a sweet gesture, one that it killed him to turn down. "I appreciate you thinking of me, but no thanks. I can't."
Dean hesitated a moment before he began walking back in the direction of his hotel room, stopping first at the newsstand to pick up a few newspapers.
When he arrived back at his hotel room, he slammed the papers down on the table, his frustration finally reaching it's boiling point. Dean took a few deep breaths, reminding himself that this was how it was supposed to be.
He was pulling off his jacket when there was a knock at the door. Expelling a deep, frustrated breath, he stalked toward the door and wasn't at all surprised to find Peyton standing on the other side. "Can I come in?" she asked him softly.
After a moment's hesitation, he held the door open wider, allowing her inside. "I didn't mean to blow you off," he told her as he shut the door.
"It's breakfast, Dean," she said frankly watching as he leaned against the door, keeping his distance. "It's not like it's a freaking bulletin board plastered with pictures of you that says 'I Heart Dean'," she told him in a huff. "You have to eat, don't you?"
"Yeah." Okay, so she had a point. Big friggin' deal. That didn't change his stance.
"Or do you just live on coffee and beer?"
"I probably could if I wanted to," he joked. His laughter died when she sent a glare in his direction. Clearly she was not amused. "Not funny? Right. Sorry."
"It's the age thing, isn't it?"
"No. Yes." He sighed. "Okay… maybe a little." It was the age thing. He couldn't lie. But it was also the fact that she would never know who he was. Sure, she'd get a few glimpses of him now and again but what good was being in a relationship when you couldn't be completely honest with the other person?
He couldn't be her Prince Charming or promise her the fairytale. So what was the point?
"How old are you anyway?"
"Twenty-six. Why?"
"No reason," Peyton said with a shrug. Truth was she wanted to put her mind at ease with the age difference between them. Eight years was a healthy difference, though. She could see his reluctance to get close to her. A relationship with her could land him in jail. "Look, just because I'm younger than you doesn't mean we can't hang out. I mean… are you going to ignore Lucas and Haley, too?"
"Lucas and Haley aren't you," he argued, frowning at his word choice. Way to go, Dean, he silently chided himself. Lay it all on the line right here and now.
"I'm sorry?"
"Nevermind," he said, wanting to get away from this topic of conversation. He was attracted to her, that much was obvious by now and already he knew that if he spent anymore time with her it wasn't going to make leaving town in a few days any easier. As if being in the same room alone with her at the moment was making it any easier on him as it was.
"You're in town just a few days and all I'm offering is a little companionship. That's all."
"Companionship?" he repeated. "What am I, a fucking Cocker Spaniel?"
"I'll only pet you if you want me to," she smirked cheekily.
The first rebuttal to pop into Dean's head was something that included licking that she no doubt would find dirty by all means so he kept his mouth shut. He didn't know her well enough to be throwing sexual barbs at her.
Not yet anyway.
"You better be careful I may take you up on that offer," he said, watching as she fell onto his bed. He realized a moment later that his valiant effort to keep his distance had been shot to hell.
She only smiled as she pulled open her bag of goodies, throwing a blueberry muffin at him. "Eat up. We have a busy day ahead of us."
Dean eyed her curiously as he juggled his muffin from hand to hand. "And what exactly are we doing?"
"It's a surprise."
"Well, you better tell me now. I don't like surprises."
"Noted, but I'm not telling you. Now, eat," she ordered as he moved toward her, settling down beside her on the bed.
"You're bossy," he muttered under his breath.
"Oh, stop your whining. You know you like it," she said nudging his shoulder playfully, relieved that the tension was gone when he nudged her back.
After they'd left the inn, Peyton had led him toward the pier where they stopped for coffee. "I thought you said that there was a surprise in store for me," Dean said when Peyton failed to veer away from the pier.
"There is."
"I don't wanna state the obvious here but I've seen the pier. Many times, in fact. I doubt we'll see anything shocking unless you strip down and jump into the water." Idle fantasies were his friend.
Peyton rolled her eyes as she moved ahead of him. She spun around to face Dean when he asked, "So… what's your deal, Peyton?"
"My deal?" she mimicked.
"Yeah. Why are you hanging out with me? Don't you have a boyfriend to be all companionable to?" When she remained silent, he exclaimed, "Oh, please tell me there's a guy somewhere, anywhere! You cannot be single."
Peyton shook her head. "Nope. I'm as single as they come."
"That's such a shame."
"Not really," Peyton insisted. "I'm used to being alone. Sometimes I prefer it."
Dean didn't buy it. "Who's the poor sap who got away?"
An image of Jake flashed into her head, but Peyton quickly willed it away. He was never coming back and she had spent way too much time dwelling on it. It was time to move on.
"We just… there were mitigating circumstances." The Jake story was not one she wanted to go into now and especially not with Dean. She knew that he wouldn't be judgmental of the situation, but the wounds were still fresh and she didn't want to dredge them up now. Especially since the way Dean made her feel was how she had felt at the very beginning with Jake. She didn't want to taint what could be with what could have been.
"It seems there always are."
"And what about you? Is there a girl back in Kansas waiting for you?"
Dean couldn't help but laugh. "No, there's, uh… there's no girl. I'm not really… I haven't… there's been no time for relationships."
"Is that guy speak for 'I don't do relationships'?" Dean scoffed, but Peyton saw right through him. "I figured as much."
"It's not that I don't do relationships, it's that I can't."
Yeah, like she hadn't heard that excuse a hundred times. "You can't?"
Dean shook his head fervently. "I'm never in one place long enough to get to know one person and it's just not fair to keep some girl hanging on when I can never be sure if I'm ever going to see her again."
"But isn't it worth the effort to try?"
"When I find someone I can't live without? Maybe."
"And you haven't found her?"
Dean stared at her blankly, wondering how it was that she was capable of asking all the right questions. "No… I haven't found her yet."
"You will."
Dean was grateful for her optimism. "Yeah? How can you be so sure?"
"Well… I mean… you're good looking."
Dean took offense. "Just good looking?"
Peyton ignored him. "You can't dance that well so that's a few marks, obviously."
"You're honestly going to ridicule my dancing?"
"Well, in all fairness you did run out on me before I could make a proper evaluation."
"You know, I understand why you're still single," Dean quipped.
Peyton sucked in a breath as she swatted at his arm. "That was cruel, Dean!" she said, outraged.
"Hey, Blondie, you started it."
"Okay, fine…," Peyton relented as they moved toward the railing overlooking the harbor. "I'm glad you got stuck here, Dean."
Dean smiled at her over the rim of his Styrofoam coffee cup as he lifted it to his lips. "I'm glad I got stuck here, too."