Chapter 19
I Wanna Know You
The Impala roared as it zoomed down the highway at maximum speeds. She proved time and time again that she could take Dean's led foot and somewhat reckless driving. She was older and had seen more life than any of the three people that drove her. She was Dean's baby. However, one person in particular was still not okay with this form of transportation.
After about a week of hanging out with the Winchesters, Sarah was just starting to get comfortable around them. When it came to Dean's driving though, she found herself staying awake at night. She quickly found out that she trusted Dean at her side during a hunt, but not in the driver's seat of the 1967 vehicle. Sam was safer and slower than Dean was, but Dean hardly ever let Sam drive and not once has he even given a thought to Sarah driving. This was his car and if there was going to be anyone driving it, it was going to be him.
Sam laid quietly in his rightful spot next to his brother in the passenger seat. He had finally fallen asleep, something he tried to avoid doing as much as possible. Lately, he was having trouble fighting it and had finally given up.
Without a destination, Dean was just driving. They weren't in any kind of rush to get anywhere since they had no leads on the disappearance of their father. All he wanted to do was drive and forget about the world for a little while.
His eyes glanced in his rear view mirror and he spotted the girl in the backseat. Her eyes were wide open, but he could tell her mind was a million miles away. Her head leaned against the window behind him as she continued her deep thoughts. Guess I'm not the only one not getting any sleep tonight.
As the street lights flashed by, Sarah released a small sigh only loud enough for Dean to hear. At first he thought his window was open a small crack, but it wasn't. His eyes once again glanced back. This time, Sarah's head was turned to the window on the opposite side. He knew something had to be on her mind.
He turned his head toward the backseat and whispered to her, not wanting to disturb his sleeping little brother. "Wanna talk about it?"
Sarah quickly inhaled air as if she hadn't breathed in days as she was pulled out of her trance. "What?" she asked, startled.
Dean put his finger to his lips and made a small shhh before pointing to Sam.
Sarah nodded, but didn't say anything else.
"Is something bothering you?" He continued to keep his voice low.
Also not wanting to disturb Sam, Sarah scooted herself to the edge of the seat and rested her head on the front seat. Her lips were inches from his right ear. "No, not really?"
"What was that sigh, then?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just bored I guess."
"Maybe you should try and get some sleep like Sammy here."
"Can't. You drive like a maniac."
Dean huffed. "I do not."
"Do too. I'm not comfortable sleeping when I have this itty bitty thought in my mind that we're all going to die."
"Wow. Thanks for the confidence."
"No problem."
Dean shifted himself to a more comfortable position. "So what do you want to do then?"
"I don't know. Do you want to play a game or something?" Sarah suggested.
"A game? Seriously?"
"Yeah, a game? What? Are you afraid I'm gonna beat you?"
A grin popped up on his clean shaven face. "What kind of game did you have in mind?"
"We could play the sign game."
"The sign game?"
"Yeah. When you pass signs, you have to find the next letter in the alphabet. Like say, we pass a sign with an A and I catch it, that's a point for me. Then we have to find one with a B. If you catch it, you get the point. whoever has the most points wins."
"That sounds stupid."
Sarah nodded. "It is, but it's fun. I used to play it all the time with my family."
That one word caught Dean's attention. "So you have a family?"
"Of course I have a family."
"Huh. I just figured since you were out here by yourself that you were, I don't know... alone."
Sarah moved her eyes away from Dean's face and to the front window. "There's a lot you don't know about me, Dean."
"Yeah, I know. The only things I know about you is that you are shorter than me, you're from Buffalo and you're proud of it for whatever reason."
"Hey," she snapped. "If I hear you make fun of my hometown again, I'll shank you in your sleep."
"And you're extremely defensive."
"Is there something wrong with that?"
"No, I get it. I'm like that, too. I just hate that I know nothing about you, that's all."
"Well, I don't know much about you either." After thirty seconds of silence, Sarah came up with an idea. "Let's play a game."
Dean rolled his neck, slightly annoyed. "Sarah, that game sounded stupid. I'm not playing-"
"No, no, no. A different game. The question game. We ask each other questions and we have to be honest. It's like truth or dare, but without the dare."
"What are we, in first grade?"
"No, but it'll give us a chance to learn about each other." She nudged his arm. "Come on. It'll be fun."
"Fine. Anything other than that stupid sign game."
"Hey, that's a piece of my childhood you're making fun of and it's a game that I hope to play with my kids one day."
Dean's face scrunched in surprise. "You want kids?"
"Ooo, good first question."
"That wasn't-"
"Too late. And God no, I don't want kids. You see the life that we live right? I'm not dragging kids into this. What about you? Wanna have a bunch of rugrats?"
He paused for a moment. "Me? Nah. Like you said. There's no sense in dragging kids into this life. They deserve better."
"Wow, that was deep."
"How was that deep? I said what you said."
"Still deep. Okay my turn." She thought long and hard. "Whaaaat's your favorite color?"
"You've got to be kidding."
"I am not."
"You need to get some sleep. You are clearly losing your mind."
"I'm not losing my mind. Now, answer the question."
He ignored her. "The first motel I see, I'm pulling in. You are tired."
"Dean, I'm fine. Now, answer."
"I don't know. Blue?"
"Is that a question or an answer?"
"Oh my god."
"What shade of blue? Is it navy? I'm gonna guess navy."
"Sarah-"
"Oh calm down, Dean. I'm just busting your balls."
He chuckled, but didn't say anything else.
"Mine is green by the way."
"That's nice to know."
"Is it really, or are you just being an ass?"
"The world may never know."
"Ass. You're being an ass."
"Always am. It's my turn, right? What's your favorite animal?"
"Still being an ass I see."
"No, it's a real question and rules of the game. Answer me honestly."
"Fine. I like penguins."
"Seriously? Penguins can't even fly."
"Neither can you from what I hear."
"What are you talking about?"
"You're afraid of flying, Dean. That's why you drive everywhere."
"How do you know that?"
"Sam told me."
"I'm gonna kill him. Wait. Who are you to judge? Why didn't you fly anywhere?"
"Nuh-uh, Dean. Rules of the game. It's my turn."
"Fine. I'll wait. What's you question?"
"Are you a dog person or a cat person?"
"Neither. Okay my turn."
"Wait, wait, wait. You don't like neither cats nor dogs? What kind of person are you?"
"I'm allergic to cats and dogs are gross."
"I'm a cat person myself. How would you feel about a live in pet in the Impala? A little travel companion?"
"I swear to god, Sarah, if I ever see any animal in this car, I will shoot you where you stand and that's a promise."
"Fine. No cats or dogs."
"My turn. Why didn't you fly anywhere?"
"Because buying a plane ticket with a fake credit card draws too much attention. Besides, I like being on the ground. You can see more. Makes it more of an adventure."
"Adventure isn't a bad thing I guess. I still don't get why you chose to take the bus over driving your own car, but that's just me."
Sarah gently touched Dean's arm and slowly released a yawn. "Maybe one day I'll tell ya." She rested her head on her arm and slowly closed her eyes. "Dean?"
Noticing her sudden sleepiness, Dean eased up on the gas. "Yeah, Sweetheart?"
This time, she didn't object to the name. Instead, she smiled. "Thanks for being awesome." With that, she was out.
Dean took his eyes off the road only for a second to see if she was truly asleep. "You're awesome, too, Sarah."
Not seeing a motel for miles, Dean continued to drive safely. His slower speeds helps her sleep. At this point, he would do anything to make her happy. If that meant driving slow, then driving slow it will be. I just wish I knew more about her. I still have so many questions. I missed my shot to ask her. I don't even know how old she is. I want to know about her family, what she thinks about when she doesn't speak for long periods of time, why she doesn't drive that car she told me she has, how she got into the business and why she was by herself, and how long was she by herself. I didn't even know her full name. I just want to know everything about her. Why won't she just tell me everything? I guess I haven't told her the truth completely either. Should I tell her about Dad? About Mom? Would she stick around if I told her how screwed up our family really is? I know I would turn the other way. Sammy did tell her about my flying issue. What else did he tell her? Did he already tell her about Dad? No. I asked him not to. He wouldn't do that to me. Besides, if she would have known, she would have brought it up. She's not the kind of person to avoid something like that. I just know it. These thoughts streamed through his head for what felt like hours.
A bright, red sign saying "Starlight Motel" shined at the next exit. I think I could use some Z's, too. He pulled the car into the parking lot. He turned the keys, stopping the engine. Dean left his brother and friend in the car to sleep as he went to check in.
At the check in desk stood an old man with a long, white beard. He was watching late night TV on a big box television. He looked up at Dean. "What can I do ya for?"
"I'd like a room please."
The old man looked up at the plain clock on the wall. "At 2 am?"
"Did a lot of driving today. Going on a road trip," Dean said with a smile.
"By yourself?"
Dean noticed his skepticism, but it wasn't like he was lying this time. They didn't have a set destination. A road trip was exactly what they'd been doing. "No. My brother and our friend are sleeping in the car. I was going to wake them once I got us checked in."
He didn't truly believe Dean, but he didn't have a choice. He was a paying customer. What did it matter if he was lying or not? He asked for Dean's credit card and ID, just to make sure.
Dean complied, pulling out a stollen credit card and the matching fake ID.
The old man didn't argue any further. He handed Dean the key to a room. "Room 13."
He took the key and gave a quick smile. "Thanks. Have a good night," and he ran out of there as fast as he could. He was too tired to deal with anymore of this guy's questions.
He found the room and moved the car to the spot in front of it. Dean unlocked the door, brought in all of their important materials and bags, and then woke up Sam.
Sam's eyes fluttered open at Dean's light hit. "What?"
Dean repeated his motion of putting his finger to his lips. "She's sleeping, Sammy. I got us a room. Go to bed. I got her." He opened the car door for his half sleeping brother.
Sam stepped out and walked to the still open motel door. He found the bed closest to the door and plopped down, instantly falling back asleep.
The oldest Winchester walked to the back door of the Impala and opened it slowly, trying to avoid any creaking, revealing a sleeping Sarah still slumped over on the front seat. He stared at her for a second and admired at how peaceful she appeared. His arm unhurriedly slipped itself under her legs and lifted. When she started to stir, Dean halted all movement, trying everything to prevent her from waking. Once she stopped, he tried again, this time was successful. He supported her body with his other arm as he took her from the car. Sarah's head rested on his chest and he held his breath. Each step he took was carefully analyzed until he was beside the empty bed. He placed her as gently as he could on the bed's surface and removed her boots from her feet to make her more comfortable. He lifted her legs and grabbed the blanket from under her and placed it over her slow breathing body.
Looking at his brother and then back to his friend, he was glad with the life that he had, even though he didn't have anywhere to sleep. He would have given up the beds to them anyway. Instead, he laid his sleeping bag on the floor and used one of his bags as a pillow. He laid on his side and slowly fell into a deep sleep.
A/N: This chapter was named after I Wanna Know You by Hannah Montana and David Archuleta. This song is my childhood :D
