Chapter Four – Just Another Night

Dean disappeared into the kitchen as he took the dirty plates to the sink. Amy's eyes followed him closely and when she was sure he was out of hearing distance, she grabbed Sam's shoulder quickly and brought her lips to his ear. Surprised, Sam leaned closer to hear what Amy had to say.

"I have to explain this quickly," Amy rushed in a silent tone. "We can see Isabella because of your mom and Jessica."

"What-" Sam started but Amy interrupted.

"-Listen," she whispered harshly. "Dean can't know about this, remember? Anyway…it's important you know this…Mary and Jessica can't explain what exactly is wrong with Izzy – either they don't know or they're not allowed to tell – but there is definitely something heavy going on with Izzy…something that's apparently strong…both Mary and Jess are helping us to see her. It's not just the psychic thing…or the fact that we've dealt with the weird-stuff before…"

Sam turned his head quickly to the kitchen opening. He could hear his brother dropping something on the floor and yelling: "It's okay!"

He turned back to Amy and Sam whispered, "We should explain this to Dean. If this is just more than an out-of-body experience, he should know!"

"No!" Amy yelled rather loudly and but caught herself. She continued, "Dean can't know. It's bad enough that you know."

"Maybe we're meant to know…" Sam reminded. "You're the one who told us things happen for a reason. Maybe we're meant to know – we should know."

Amy tilted her head and shook it sadly. "You don't think I want to tell Dean? I have to do this…I'm respecting their wishes…"

Sam sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. He searched Amy's sad face and asked, "You've talked to them lately?"

She stared sadly at her younger friend and Amy remarked, "When Isabella first came to me. She doesn't know about my unique ability…since then, I haven't heard from them. No doubt, they're here…but they won't reveal themselves to me…"

He shook his head and rubbed his chin. "Alright, fine…" He closed his eyes for a while and reopened them. "Okay…about Isabella…best thing to do is to see her body at the hospital. Maybe there's something that can help explain what happened to her…"

Amy smiled and rubbed Sam's shoulder. "Thanks. I'll go call my friend, Ms. Forrester, and remind her about tomorrow…I have work in the morning…I'll be back here around ten-forty-five…we'll leave for the hospital then. While I'm gone – if you guys aren't sleeping – you can do more research. Maybe talk to Izzy a bit more."

Sam agreed to the plan by nodding and smiling. Amy smiled back and leaned over on the couch to kiss him on the head. "I've missed you kiddo."

"'Missed you too…" Sam replied and rolled his eyes playfully.

She pulled back and stared down at the thin gray scars on his cheek. Amy bit her lip and asked, "You going to tell me where those came from any time soon?"

"You going to tell Dean your unique ability any time soon?" Sam suggested.

Amy cocked her head at him and rose from the couch when Dean came back to the living room.

"You know that black plate with the swirly thingy around the edge?" Dean asked.

Amy narrowed her eyes and nodded.

Dean bit his lip and said, "I hope you didn't like it too much."

O.O.O.O.O.O.

"Hi, this is Aimes Cromwell in Evanston. I am trying to reach Officer Blake Evans. My home phone number…"

Dean and Sam listened as Amy left a message for the Chicago police station. She hung up after a moment and rejoined them in the living room.

"Ms. Forrester will join us at the hospital tomorrow. We'll get her at around noon…I'd like to get my friend Officer Evans involved with the investigation. Maybe get us closer to the case."

"All you need now is a fake ID and social security number and you're ready to hit the road with us," Dean noted as he took another sip of his beer.

Amy smiled proudly and said, "I've learned it's important to have contacts…especially after everything we've been through…"

"And Ms. Forrester," Sam asked, "she's a psychic?"

"Palm reader," Amy nodded as she sat down on the couch. She had changed into a pair of loose fitting jeans and a thin white T-shirt. "Maybe she can get a good reading from Izzy's hand at the hospital."

"Any other ideas?" Dean asked as he watched Sam flip through their father's journal.

Sam shrugged. "Astral projection is the only thing I can come up with. Isabella is in a coma…and we're seeing her…it's a very strong out-of-body experience…we'll figure more out tomorrow."

"You get one of your little vibe thingies and maybe I can get one of my feelings," Amy suggested. "By the way, how's the whole stretching-out-your-mind doing?"

Sam chuckled, "I haven't been able to do it since we left 1997. 'Guess I'm still not strong enough to do it on my own."

"And the whole moving things with your mind…" Amy questioned. "And that?"

"Worked only once…"

She seemed disappointed. Amy had been really excited to learn of Sam's telekinesis. Dean relaxed back into the leather cushions of the sofa as he finished his second beer.

"Man, I'm ready to hit the sack," Dean yawned.

Amy rolled her eyes and sighed, "It's only six o'clock."

"Exactly," Dean yawned again. "A man needs his beauty sleep."

Sam shook his head at his brother and mentioned, "I am going to do a bit more research. Maybe there's more to learn from the crash."

Amy nodded sadly. "I hope we figure it out soon."

"What do you mean?"

She sighed slowly and noted, "Some are wondering if Isabella's accident was really an accident…" She licked her lip and sighed again. "Some are saying maybe she purposely drove into the pole."

Dean shook his hands angrily and sighed. "Damn. Gotta be rough on her."

"It has been," Amy explained. "Isabella didn't want to explain that. The car was totaled. I doubt they'll find that the stuck steering wheel was the cause of the accident. It's been hard for her family to accept the possible idea of Izzy intentionally crashing her car."

Sam nodded slowly and remarked, "We'll figure this out ASAP."

O.O.O.O.O.O.

Sam got the pull-out bed this time. He sat with his back against the black cushions as he typed several things into Amy's laptop. His almond brown eyes were focused on the screen carefully. He scrolled down the page and found a picture of Isabella's car – it didn't even look like a Honda anymore, more like a balled up piece of red paper.

He winced at the sight of the destruction. The pole almost bent in half. Luckily there were no photos of Isabella inside the car.

Continuing to scroll down the page, he turned his head when he realized Dean was coming into the living room. He was really dressed for bed – white T-shirt and a pair of black sweats. He ran a hand through his dirty blonde hair and yawned again.

"You should get some sleep," Sam offered. "We haven't had a lot lately. Remember, we're vacationing…get some sleep."

"And you?" Dean coughed out – caught in between speaking and yawning. "You should be getting some sleep."

"This case is bugging me," Sam muttered. "I can't help but feel really obligated to figure this out soon. Poor Isabella…"

"We'll figure this out soon," Dean assured. "We've dealt with more difficult crap before. This is like us riding a bike."

"A big bike," Sam noted. He stared back at the screen and said, "The possible causes I've found in articles have suggested either Isabella somehow fell asleep at the wheel or she attempted to kill herself by crashing the car…it's insane…"

"Anything about the car?" Dean asked.

"The car was too damaged to inspect, I guess," Sam read on. "There's supposedly an investigation on how this still happened…"

"Sounds like bull to me."

"Same."

Sam leaned back in his couch/bed and shook his head.

"Some vacation, huh?" he smiled.

Dean tilted his head to the side and shrugged. "At least there's no one or nothing after us. We can sleep peacefully."

"Peacefully…" Sam repeated. The word was strange on his tongue. He faced his brother and whispered, "Have you tried calling him yet?"

Dean turned his gaze to the main hallway. He could still hear the shower going on in the bathroom.

"Yeah," Dean answered Sam. "I left a message. He hasn't been picking up – surprise, surprise. He's busy. You know that."

"Still…" Sam sighed. "We've seen him now. It'd be nice to talk to him."

"Give it time," Dean replied annoyingly. "Dad's got a lot on his shoulders right now."

"And us?" Sam laughed. "We're just…what exactly? Having a good time?"

"Look…" Dean replied, trying to keep his tone down and stop a future fight. "Dad's healing too after what happened. Just be happy that those shadow demons are gone and that crazy blonde Meg is no longer a thorn in our asses. Let's just try to relax while we're here. Have a good time with Amy. Save the damsel…and move on with our lives…"

"Lives…" Sam whispered to himself. He watched as Dean made his way to the kitchen. Sam shook his head sadly and murmured, "Do we even have those anymore?"

O.O.O.O.O.O.

9:00 P.M…

Sam had been the first to fall asleep. He had his father's journal opened over his chest. Strands of his curly brown hair covered his face. Amy swept the strands away and gently pulled the covers over her friend. Her hair was still wet and she wore a black silk robe. She made sure Sam was comfortable and removed the laptop and John Winchester's journal from the bed. Sam made no movement while Amy took care of him, which was a good sign that he was sound asleep.

O.O.O.O.O.O.

Amy opened the door all the way to find Dean half-asleep. He had his arm over his head in the guestroom bed as his eyes were studying the ceiling.

"Hey…" Amy whispered.

"Hey…" Dean whispered back. He sat up slightly in bed as Amy made her way over to him. She sat down on the edge and rested her hand on his.

"Comfortable?" she asked.

"I'm fine."

Amy reached upward to touch his face. Her fingers traced over the thin scars on his forehead. She narrowed her eyes at him and sighed, "I wish you and Sam wouldn't be so stubborn and just tell me what happened."

"Everything's fine, trust me," Dean tried to reassure her. He took hold of her hand and motioned for her to sit closer with him.

Amy sat more into the bed and lied down. Her head rested on his chest while her hand rested on his. The couple sat quietly together in the dim room.

Dean smiled to himself as he whispered, "I've missed this."

She half-smile and nodded on his chest. She looked up slowly as their fingers tangled with one another's.

"You and Sam have been okay, right?" she asked oddly. "I mean…the last four months haven't been…well…"

Dean nodded.

"You're lying."

"This is what happens when you're dating a psychic."

Amy sat up on the bed and gave a stern glare. "Dean, please…I can't help it sometimes…it just sorta perks my senses…what's been happening with you guys?"

She tried to touch the scars again by Dean intervened. He held her wrist in his hand gently and then rested her hand on his chest.

"My heart is still beating…everything is okay. Remember what we promised each other when we made arrangements for this visit? No worry. No concern. Just good, plain ol' fun."

"Well new factors are involved now."

"Let's focus on helping Isabella…we can still enjoy our time in between," Dean reminded. "This is supposed to be our vacation…Isabella is just a stop sign. And you know how I drive." He smiled and touched the side of her face.

She pouted playfully and rolled her eyes. "I'll try not to worry so much. You know eventually you're going to have to tell me what happened."

A wide grin spread across his face as Dean added slyly, "Why waste time talking?"

She couldn't help but let out a small laugh. Her head tilted to the side as Dean leaned down to kiss her. The contact of lips eased the feeling in the room. There was no worry. No concern. Just the two of them.

O.O.O.O.O.O.

It was midnight when she had fallen asleep in his arms. Dean was careful as he carried her into her own bedroom and tucked her beneath the comforter. Her fair skin glowed against the moonlight before the glow disappeared as Dean drew back the curtains and the room became dark.

He could hear her breathe gently in the dark. Dean didn't mind Amy falling asleep by his side. He knew she had work in the morning, so it was probably better if she woke up to do her regular routine.

Dean left the familiar bedroom and glanced at the sleeping professor before closing the door.

O.O.O.O.O.O.

Sam was still dead asleep when Dean made his way to the balcony. He closed the glass doors behind him quietly and stepped into the cool night.

The trees were full and the air was so fresh.

Dean took out his cell phone from the pocket of his sweatpants and moments later had the cellular device to his ear.

Several seconds passed by when Dean spoke softly: "Hey Dad. Me again. Sam and I are in Evanston – staying with Amy. We're handling a new case now. Not-so-dead girl. Pretty interesting." He laughed and bit his lip. "I just wanted to call-again-to make sure that you were okay. I promise as soon as Sam and I can gather full strength (after everything that happened) we'll be back on the road looking for that thing. I just…I just wanted to let you know that everything's okay. Okay?"

He hung up. Dean couldn't help but let his fist fall angrily to his side.

There had been no word since they had departed. Dean wanted so desperately to know if he was okay.

The life of a Winchester…

If there wasn't anything holding Dean back, he would be out on the road right now. The fact that they were now so close to finding the thing that killed Mary Winchester killed him. Sam was just as dedicated – but he was the one to suggest a small break.

Dean admitted he needed one. They had to gather back their strength. They were exhausted – physically and mentally.

And Amy. Dean was now involved with her. Four months apart were four months too much. Of course he had to see her. Dean had no problem with that. But still…

We're so close…

He always wondered how Sam dealt with this sort of thing when he was involved with Jessica. Jessica never knew the things that Sam knew…the things he had dealt with…the things he had fought…but Sam was able to separate his hunting life from his Stanford one.

Dean knew Sammy could never leave behind this type of life. They would always be obligated to hunt. To fight the forces of darkness. To kill every evil thing.

He had forgotten stars. Dean stared upward and gazed at the sparkling dots in the sheet of ebony. He sighed and took in a deep breath.

Stars or no stars…This is just another night…another night in my life…

He wondered if there would ever be any rest for him. For Sammy. For their father. Is the only peace in the world found in death? It couldn't be.

Will things ever change…

Dean stuck the cell phone back into his pocket. He glared around the surroundings and slipped through the balcony doors and quietly closed them.

O.O.O.O.O.O.

A/N: Just a little Dean angst…will update with more fun chapters ASAP. I want to add a fun-exciting chapter before I leave Friday. Hope I can update ASAP – REVIEWS,FEEDBACK MUCH MUCH APPRECIATED!