Author's Note: I really loved writing this chapter! Getting a glimpse into Mariah's past was fun to write, but also, young Sam and Dean are so cute! Anyways, please enjoy this really long chapter!
November 27th, 1986—Thanksgiving
It's funny how family will just drop in unexpectedly. The whole week leading up to Thanksgiving, my family had been appearing in droves. First, my meddlesome mother showed up with my father in tow and demanded that I come home to New Hampshire for Thanksgiving.
"Mariah, dear," She had begun, voice dripping with false charm. "This town will live if you close this clinic for one day." She shot me a small grin and my father muttered something about "damn women" as he took another swig of the beer I had managed to scrounge up for him to drink.
"Mom," I started, trying not to let her drive me insane. "You know how busy I get—"
"Mariah," Her voice was sharp now and her green eyes had hardened. "You will come home for Thanksgiving or I will make it my personal mission to get this clinic shut down."
And suddenly, I felt like I was 16 years old again, telling my mother that I had no intentions of marrying Thomas Akin and becoming a rich housewife when I was older. She had threatened to disown me then, but I had managed to come through the other side somehow.
"You can't do that," I hissed. "This clinic—"
"Has ruined your life!" Mom completed, dramatically throwing her hands in the air. "Look at you! You're almost 30, living in squalor—"
"Squalor?" I echoed, unsure whether to laugh at how ignorant my mother truly was.
"With no hopes of marrying a decent man and having children!"
"Mom, I have a great job that I love—!"
"You come home for Thanksgiving," Mother told me, rising from the table and dragging my father up with me. "Or I will make your life miserable, Mariah!"
And with that, she left the clinic in a huff.
My brother's wife was the next to show up, almost two days after my mother's meltdown. While Rich and I didn't get along—he had been a horribly cruel older brother to me—I adored his wife, Suzanne. She was kind and also was beautiful. Her long brown hair cascaded down her back and she was always impeccably dressed. What made us get along; however, was the fact that she supported me. She had stood up to my mother on my behalf and had helped me out during the year that I had been disowned after deciding to go to medical school.
"Suzanne, what a surprise!"
"Mariah, you look wonderful!" She embraced me and I invited her inside. Together, we sat down at the small table that I had put in the kitchen area upstairs.
"So, what brings you here?"
"I wanted to ask a huge favor," She anxiously tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and I held my breath, knowing what she was going to say. "Come home for Thanksgiving!"
"I—" Suzanne didn't give me a chance to finish my sentence for she grasped my hand within her own and her eyes welled up in tears.
"Please, don't leave me alone with all of them!" I sighed and tried to untangle myself from her grasp. "Mariah, I need you to help me get through this. Please, I'm begging you! I can't go through one more year of that madness—"
"Fine." I sighed, resigning myself to a Thanksgiving full of misery and horror.
"Oh, really?" She perked up instantly and I found myself once more in her embrace. "Thank you! I owe you one!"
"Yes, you do."
"I'll make it up to you, I swear!" A clock chimed and she jumped up. "Oh, crap, I've gotta go. I'll see you soon though!"
As she sprinted out the door, I wondered what I had gotten myself into.
The night before Thanksgiving, I tried to prepare myself mentally for all of the backhanded compliments that my mother would dish out and the ways that my brother would tease me, while the rest of my extended family bickered over some new summer home. My family was incredibly self-centered and was "old-money" as my mother had fondly told me everyday growing up. As the self-professed "black sheep" of the family, I dreaded having to go back to them. They were so negative and I had finally gotten out! I had managed to defy everyone's expectations and make something of myself and yet, the holidays forced me to relieve my awful childhood and past.
A pounding at the door cut off all of the flashbacks swirling in my brain. Glancing at the clock, I could see that it was already 10:00pm and I cautiously peeked out the widow before opening the door.
"John?"
"Evening, Mariah." He greeted with a small smile on his lips. He held Sam in his arms and the toddler was asleep. Dean was by his side, looking like he might pass out on the spot. Ushering them in, I put on a pot of coffee while John put the boys to bed. By the time John returned, I had two cups out and I was already sitting.
"Are you guys okay?" I questioned cautiously, because the last time I had seen them, all three of them had been in bad shape.
"We're fine." John assured me, the smile still in place.
"I'm glad to hear that."
A pause passed as John took a few sips of his coffee and I tried to figure out why he was here. He wasn't hurt so he didn't need a doctor. The boys, aside from being tired, also seemed perfectly healthy.
"Listen, I was wondering if you could do a favor."
"Yes?" I prompted and John ran a hand through his hair, almost as if he was nervous.
"There's a hunt nearby," He started, meeting my gaze. "And it's going to take me a few days to sort out. I can't take the boys—"
"You want me to baby-sit?" I surmised and he nodded.
"I know, this is so sudden, but this might be my only chance to kill this thing." I pinched the bridge of my nose and tried to think. How would my family re-act if I suddenly brought to kids to our notoriously not kid-friendly thanksgiving dinner? Would Sam and Dean even remotely enjoy themselves? "Please, Mariah." There was something so gentle in his tone that caused me to cave.
"Okay," I told him, a small grin on my lips. "I'll take them to Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow."
"Thank you," John said sincerely. "I owe you one."
I just smiled.
He left as soon as he had awoken Dean and explained what was going on. Then, with a respectful bob of his head, he walked out and got into the familiar black Impala. I went to bed soon after that and I awoke early, determined to make today a good day. Thanksgiving or not, I wasn't going to let dinner with my family ruin all of this.
"Mariah!" Sam exclaimed happily as he sat on the floor. He woken up before Dean surprisingly—his older brother must've been exhausted—and had energetically explored nearly every crevice of the kitchen before plopping himself by my side. I was surprised that he was able to say my name after only seeing me twice before, but I could see that Sam was a bright kid, extraordinarily gifted for his age.
"That's me," I cooed, fawning over how adorable he was. "You like pancakes, Sammy?"
"Dean loves them!" He chirped and I chuckled as I flipped over a chocolate chip pancake. "He lets me have his sometimes."
"He does?" I asked, surprised by just how giving Dean was with his brother.
"Yeah!"
"Sammy," Dean called as he emerged from the spare room. He regarded me kindly and I smiled. It would seem that saving his father's life had finally caused Dean to trust me. "You shouldn't be so loud. It's early."
"I'm not loud, Dean!" Sam shouted and Dean scooped him up and placed him on his lap as he sat down at the table.
"Sure, you're not." Dean muttered. I chuckled as I kept my eyes on the pancake cooking on the stove.
"Pancake, Dean?" The older Winchester brother nodded eagerly and I took his plate and filled it with a stack of piping hot pancakes. I wasn't sure how much young boys ate, but it was better to overcook than undercook right? Dean; however, slid one of the pancakes off his stack and placed it on another plate where he cut it up into very small pieces. He waited until Sam started eating before he finally cut into his own pancakes and I couldn't help but be touched by the small display of affection that had just taken place before me. I had been fully prepared to do that for Sam, but Dean had beaten me to it.
"Dean." Sam began, pancake showing in his open mouth.
"Chew with your mouth closed, Sam." Dean admonished, as he took a bite of his own pancake.
"Mariah says we get to go to Thanksgiving!" Dean's head perked up as he met my gaze.
"Call her Dr. Tate—"
"No, Mariah is fine." I insisted. Dean smiled cautiously at me and then paused before continuing.
"Is that true?" Dean finished. "Are we going to do Thanksgiving?"
"You don't do it with your dad?" I questioned and Dean shook his head. His eyes flashed with sadness and I made a note to ask John about this once he returned. Could this have something to do with their mother? What had exactly happened to her? "Well, yeah, I was hoping if you two were okay with it, that we could go to my Thanksgiving dinner."
"With your family?" Dean's tone was a mix of fear and worry and I chuckled dryly. I shared the sentiment.
"Yeah, if that's okay with you two," I continued. "My family is well . . ." I paused trying to think of a child-approved word to describe them. "Well, they're a bit overbearing, but Thanksgiving is about spending time with family, right?"
"We're not your family." Dean mumbled, the sadness once again appearing in his eyes and I sighed softly. Reaching out across the table, I held his small hand within my own.
"Not by blood maybe," I conceded. "But you two boys and your daddy, you're always welcome here. That's what a family is, Dean. People that will always take you in, no matter what." He seemed to let that sink in before nodding slowly. Rising from the table, I resolved that everything would work out.
"Tell me those children aren't yours."
Those were the first words out of my mother's mouth after Sam, Dean, and I had entered the dining room. I had called Suzanne and she had lent Sam and Dean some of her son's clothes from when he was their ages. My nephew though had been excused from attending since Suzanne had conveniently enrolled him in summer camp. Lucky duck . . .
"Nice to see you too, Mother." She took a sip of her wine and then rose from her place at the head of the dining room.
"Mariah, I'm not playing around—" Her tone held a hidden warning in it and I forced myself to bite my tongue. I was trying to survive and fighting wouldn't help anyone.
"I'm looking after them," I explained. "Their father is a good friend of mine." Sam clutched my hand tightly as my mother eyed him and his brother with a disapproving glance.
"Mariah, honestly," She sighed as she rolled her eyes. "Work is all you do!"
"I think it's nice." Suzanne interjected, winking at me.
"Oh, shut up." Mother mumbled under her breath as she took another sip of her wine.
"This is Sam," I gestured with the hand that Sam wasn't currently squeezing to death. "And his brother, Dean."
"I didn't make places for them."
"You can add some, Mom," I informed her. "You have plenty more and you know it."
"Don't take that tone with me!" Mother snapped.
"Mom—" Rich started, but a harsh look from Mom cut him off.
"I am just asking you to add two more plates." I calmly told her.
"I will not!" She shouted and Sam stiffened. "They aren't even family! They're strangers!"
"Linda," My father said quietly. "Just do it." She slammed her wine glass down on the table.
"I most certainly will not!" She screeched. "I have standards and these standards must be upheld—" Sam shook beside me and my mind became made up. I knelt down to Sam and patted his head as I smiled at him.
"You two wait for me outside, okay?" Sam nodded and Dean took his hand and they headed out the front door.
"Well, that's better." Mother approved.
"Well, I guess this is goodbye." I told her, not regretting this decision. I turned around and headed towards the door with my mom screaming my name all the way.
"Mariah, you walk out that door, you will be dead to us!"
I walked out the door without a second thought.
"Come on," I said to the boys. "Let's go home."
It was later that night after our version of an impromptu Thanksgiving—Thank God for Chinese take-out—and after I had tucked the boys into bed that the effects of what I had really done sunk in. This hadn't been the first time that I had been disowned, but this time I knew it was final. There would never be any reconciliation between my mother and I. Who knew whether I'd even see them again? Still, as much I knew that I had made the right decision, it still hurt. I had no family. I was now an orphan, floundering in the dark world by myself.
"Mariah?" I hadn't even noticed I had been crying until Dean had handed me a tissue. "You hurt?"
"No," I sobbed, furiously trying to wipe away tears. "Go back to bed, Dean." He didn't move and simply sat beside me.
"She's stupid." Dean suddenly spoke up and I regarded him curiously.
"What?"
"For being mean to you like that," Dean explained, somewhat embarrassed. "Sammy and me, we heard her shouting at you. She'll be sorry." He hesitated for a second and then mind seemingly made up, he hugged me quickly. Stunned, it took me a few seconds to register what was going on and by then, Dean had let go of me. He was blushing, clearly embarrassed by his actions.
"Dean," He met my eyes and I sincerely grinned. "Thank you." He scrambled to his feet and I suppressed a laugh at how cute he was.
"Good night." With that, he ran upstairs.
I followed him shortly after, feeling much better.
The next morning, John had returned and I felt a small pang of sadness that the boys were leaving. Sam embraced me and made me promise to make him more pancakes the next time they came. Dean allowed me to hug him quickly before he got embarrassed again.
"They give you any trouble?" John inquired after the boys had gotten into the car.
"No, none at all." I reported with a wistful grin.
"How was Thanksgiving dinner?" John questioned and I grimaced.
"They got me through it," I admitted. "You're lucky to have them, John."
"Don't I know it." John mumbled. A pause passed.
"John?"
"Yeah?"
"Feel free to visit whenever," I told him sincerely. "The door is always open—injured or not."
"And if you ever need anything . . ." His voice trailed off and I nodded.
"I'll call." I promised.
With that, the Winchesters drove out of my life once more.
Author's Note: My favorite part of this chapter was Dean comforting Mariah. I loved writing that. Anyways, next chapter, something supernatural is happening in Mariah's clinic! Can John and the boys help? If you have a second, I'd love to hear what you thought!