Six Weeks Later
Leslie was cremated, a funeral held, and life returned to semi-normal. Bobby stayed two full weeks, John another three days, then headed back home. Sam felt guilty not being there for his father. He wondered how he was feeling, having lost the person what was, as far as he knew, the only woman John had truly cared about since his mother. But when he said something to John about it, all he got in response was,
"I appreciate you wanting to be there for me, Sam, but you've got your hands full. Help Jess and Kayla right now. Dean and Bobby are there for me if I need them."
The driver of the car that had hit Leslie and the girls turned himself in a week later. He took a plea bargain, saving the family from the ordeal of a trial. Sam went back to work ten days after the accident, though he was far more focused on his family than his cases.
Kayla didn't talk again. She would nod and shake her head for yes and no, seek out one or both her parents when she woke up from a nightmare, and would hug them to say 'thank you'. Her time otherwise was spent in her room, drawing or reading.
School let out for summer break a couple of weeks later. Kayla's grades were good enough that she was passed onto fourth grade, despite missing a full week and a half of classes and assignments. Sam was thinking of taking Dr. Cole's advice to send Kayla to a psychiatrist, when she shocked her parents one month to the day of the accident by coming downstairs and asking,
"What's for breakfast?"
While Kayla was slowly getting better, Jess was slowly getting worse. After packing up her mother's house, she was short-tempered with Kayla, Mary, and Sam. More than once, Sam came home to find Kayla fixing cereal for herself and Mary for dinner. Kayla reluctantly told Sam a week after she started to talk again that there were days Jess didn't get out bed until close to lunchtime. She would fix something to eat for the two of them, then go back to bed. Sam tried to talk to Jess, but was met with a stone wall.
"Jess, if you need some time, I can get Dena to come and help take care of the girls. I can try to get a leave of absence. But this has to stop. They're way too young to be taking care of themselves."
Kayla tried to help. She would clean up after herself and Mary, take Mary into the yard to play, go to Jess's room and offer a comforting hand for her mother, do laundry, and anything else she could do herself. All her efforts were either met with silence or a command from her mother to do something else. Kayla decided that her mother must be angry that she hadn't done more to help grandma in the accident, so she was determined to make it up to her.
"Come on, Mary. You need a bath."
"No baff." the two-year old scrunched her face in disgust. She hated to get wet.
"Come on. I'll go really fast and then I'll play with you before bed. Deal?"
Mary thought about the proposition and decided it was worth it. "Otay. I get baff."
Kayla had never given Mary a bath alone before, but she'd seen Mommy and Daddy do it enough that she was confident she knew what to do. She took Mary into the bathroom, took her out of the clothes she was wearing, and was relieved to find Mary didn't need a diaper change. She plugged the tub and made sure the water wasn't too hot. She placed Mary in the tub and then realized she forgot something.
"I'll be right back, Mary. I've got to get a towel."
Mary was too distracted playing with a toy to hear Kayla. Kayla went to the linen closet and opened it up. The bath towels were just above her reach, so she grabbed the small ladder that was at the bottom of the closet and propped it open. She was at the top of the ladder reaching for the towel when she heard it.
"MARY!"
Kayla was so startled by her mother's sudden scream that she fell off the ladder flat onto the floor. After recovering herself, Kayla jumped up from the floor and ran to the bathroom, where Jess was holding Mary and turning the water off as fast as she could.
"What the hell happened?" Jess demanded.
"I was just…"
"Just what, Kayla? What were you doing?" Jess said.
Kayla started to shake. Mommy never yelled at her. Ever. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what? Answer the question, Kayla. What were doing?"
"Trying to give her a bath."
"You cannot leave a baby alone in a bathtub." Jess said. "She could have drowned! What were you thinking?"
"I'm sorry, Mommy." Kayla said.
"Sorry is not enough, Kayla. Go to your room. Now. And do not come out until I send your Daddy in there when he gets home."
"I was just trying to help." Kayla cried.
She was certain she was about to get a spanking when Daddy got home. Not that she didn't deserve it, but Kayla felt terrible for almost hurting her sister.
"Like you helped grandma?"
Kayla stared at her mother, mouth gaping in horror. She'd suspected that Jess blamed her for grandma dying, but now she knew for sure. Kayla turned on her heel and ran for the front door, opened it, and ran away from home as fast as she could.
When it dawned on Jess what she had just said to Kayla, she felt sick. Jess couldn't believe how cruel she'd been, and Mary's squirming and crying out 'mean mommy' didn't help. Praying that Kayla had just gone out onto the front porch, Jess quickly threw a shirt onto Mary and went outside.
"Kayla!"
There was no answer. Kayla wasn't on the porch, the steps, or anywhere in the yard.
"KAYLA!"
Sam pulled into the driveway at that exact moment. "Jess, what's wrong?"
"Kayla ran away."
"What? When?" Sam asked.
"Just a minute ago."
"What happened?" Sam asked. Jess recounted the story and an angry Sam had finally had enough. "Damn it, Jess! We just got her talking again!"
"I know!" Jess said. "I know, I'm sorry, I just…it scared me so bad when I found Mary in that tub."
"Jess, I mean it. This has got to stop. I know you miss your mom. I get it. But Kayla is ten years old. If she had panicked and not thought to dial 911, there's no telling what would have happened to her and Mary."
"I know." Jess said.
"I have a feeling I know where Kayla is. I'm going to get her. We need to talk tomorrow about you getting help."
Jess nodded. "She's at mom's, isn't she?"
"That's what I'm thinking." Sam said. "I'll be back."
Sam pulled out of the driveway, having never gotten out of the car. He headed down the hall
towards Leslie's house. He'd been avoiding her house as often as he could, even going as far as heading to work in the opposite direction to not pass by Leslie's house. Sure enough, as he pulled into the driveway of the house that now had a 'FOR SALE' sign in the yard, he spotted Kayla sitting on the stone steps leading into the house.
"Kayla!" Sam jumped out of the car and ran to her on the steps. "Are you okay?"
Kayla pulled away and shook her head.
No, not this again, Sam thought. "Honey, I need you to talk to me. Are you okay?"
"I miss Grandma." Kayla said. "Why'd she have to die?"
"I don't know, honey. I wish I could bring her back. I miss her too."
"It's my fault she's gone." Kayla cried. "I didn't try hard enough to save her."
"Kayla Ellen Winchester, listen to me right now." Sam said. "It is not your fault that Grandma died."
"Mommy thinks so. She said it." Kayla said.
"I know she did. She told me. Baby, she did not mean that. You know that, right?"
"Yes, she did." Kayla objected. "I hurt Mary too."
"No. You didn't hurt Mary." Sam said. "Mary is fine."
"Mommy said she could've drowned!" Kayla said. "I was just trying to help and I messed up again."
"Honey, listen to me. Your mommy is sick over what she said to you. She was scared and she's hurting, but that's no excuse. I swear to you she didn't mean it. Mommy's proud of you for what you did the night of the accident. Just like me, and Grandpa, and uncle Bobby, and uncle Dean." Sam said.
"Why are you proud of me? I didn't save Grandma."
"But you tried. You tried your hardest, and that is what counts." Sam said. "You know, one of the paramedics that helped you guys that night told me that you were the bravest kid he'd ever met."
"Really?"
"Yep. He ran into me when I was in town getting groceries. He told me that you honked the horn and flashed the lights on the car so they could see you, and that you made them take care of Mary and your grandma first. That took some guts, kiddo. Especially since you were hurt too." Sam said. "If you hadn't done what you did, there's no telling what might have happened to you and Mary."
Kayla stayed silent, looking down at the ground and digesting what Sam told her.
"You wanna know something else?" Sam asked, pulling Kayla's hair back. "Your grandma hung on until she knew that you and Mary were safe and that me and Mommy were on the way. She loved you so much, Kay. You meant everything to her."
"Do you miss her too?" Kayla asked.
"Yes." Sam said with no hesitation at all. "Your grandma was the only mom I ever had. I miss her every single day."
"Does it ever stop hurting, Daddy?"
"No." Sam said, trying to stop his own tears from falling. "I wish it did, but it doesn't. But after a while, you'll be able to think about Grandma without thinking about her being gone."
"I want to tell you something, but I'm afraid you won't believe me."
"What is it?" Sam asked. "I trust you."
"I saw Grandma."
"Where?" Sam asked.
"You remember at the hospital when you woke up and I was already awake?" Kayla asked. Sam nodded, and Kayla explained, "I felt someone looking at me and I saw Grandma standing at the foot of the bed."
"What?" Sam asked. "Did she say anything?"
"No. She just blew me a kiss and waved at me." Kayla said. "She looked…different."
"Different how?"
"She wasn't hurt. She looked happy." Kayla said.
"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Sam asked.
"I thought it might make Mommy feel sad. That Grandma said goodbye to me and not her." Kayla explained. "Will you not tell her, Daddy? Please?"
"I'll keep it between us." Sam said. "Is that why you wouldn't talk for so long?"
"Mostly." Kayla said. "I was afraid Mommy'd be sad or mad at me. But she is anyway."
"No, she's not." Sam said. "I promise she's not. You ready to go home?"
"Am I in trouble?" Kayla asked.
"For what?"
"Running away and putting Mary in the tub."
Sam sighed. "For Mary, no.But, I need you to listen to me. I know you were just trying to help. But Mommy was right about one thing. You can't leave a baby alone in a bathtub. You have to watch them very closely. So no giving Mary a bath by yourself."
"I won't." Kayla said.
"As for running away? Yes, you know you're not supposed to run away."
"I know." Kayla said. "I just thought Mommy didn't want me anymore."
"I know. This isn't all on you. Mommy was very wrong with what she said to you. She knows that, and you know that you shouldn't've run away. So I'm gonna leave this between you and Mommy. But I mean it, Kayla. No. More. Running. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, sir." Kayla said. "I understand. I'm sorry."
"Apology accepted." Sam said. "You feel better?"
"A little." Kayla said.
"Okay. Good. Let's go home." Sam said, patting Kayla's knee. "Hey, I got something to tell you first."
"What is it?"
"I love you." Sam said, putting everything he had behind it. "I love you so much, Kayla bug."
"Love you too, Daddy."
"Let's go."
Five minutes later, Sam and Kayla were pulling back into the driveway of home. Jess was waiting on the front steps, knee bouncing up and down rapidly. Kayla jumped out of the car and ran up to her mother before Sam was even out of the car.
"I'm sorry, Mommy."
"Shhh. I'm sorry, baby. I'm so, so sorry. I didn't mean that." Jess said.
"I know." Kayla said. "It's okay, Mommy."
"No. No, baby, it's not." Jess said. "Sit down for me, huh?"
Kayla joined her mom on the steps, Sam taking his place next to them. Kayla wrapped her arms around Jess's waist, and Jess simply held her and stroked her hair before speaking again.
"I know I haven't been your mommy lately. I'm sorry, honey. I didn't know how to be your mommy without mine around. Does that make sense?"
"Yeah. It does." Kayla said.
"Tomorrow's Friday. When Daddy gets home from work, he and I are going away for the weekend."
"We are?" Sam asked.
"Yeah." Jess said.
"Did I do something wrong?"
"No." Jess said. "No, you didn't. You've been so good these last few weeks, honey. I couldn't have done any of this without you."
"But I hurt Mary…"
"No. You didn't hurt Mary. You were trying to take care of her, which is what I should've been doing." Jess said. "You're such a good girl, Kayla. Better than I deserve."
"When are you leaving?"
"We're only leaving for a couple of days. We'll be back Sunday night." Jess assured. "Uncle Dean's going to come and stay with you and Mary."
"I don't want you to go, Mommy. I just got you back."
"That's why I need to go, honey. I need a couple of days away so that I can get back to being the mommy you deserve. It's nothing you did wrong. I promise, when I come back Sunday night, you'll have your mommy back. Just like before. Okay?"
"Okay, Mommy." Kayla said. "I'm sorry you're so sad about Grandma. And that I ran away."
"I'm sorry you've been so sad and I haven't helped you." Jess said. "And I forgive you for running away. You forgive me?"
"Of course I do, Mommy." Kayla said.
"Mary want hug too!"
Kayla and Jess both jumped, then exploded into giggles. They had all forgotten about Mary, sitting on the opposite end of the porch, playing with her toys in nothing but a t-shirt. The tension from the day made Jess and Kayla laugh much harder than normal. Sam peeked around the backs of Kayla and Jess and suggested,
"Since Kayla's hugging Mommy, why don't you hug Daddy?"
"Otay!" Mary ran down the porch and into Sam's arms. "Yay! Mary hug too!"
"Hey, Mary. I got an idea, you want to hear it?"
"Otay!"
Sam whispered his idea into Mary's ear.
"I wike it!" Mary exclaimed.
"Ready. Set…"
"GO!" Mary shouted, then jumped between her mother and sister and started tickling them with one hand each.
The neighbors wondered about the racket coming from the Winchester house, but when one investigated, she smiled. The four of them were a tangle of limbs of the front porch, laughing and giggling with the occasional shout of 'no fair!'. For the moment, they were a happy family, and even made their neighbors jealous.
A/N: One more short chapter's coming, then that's the end of this one! I have a one shot sequel planned for this, then an Evy story, then a John story. Stay tuned!