This is my first story, so please be nice. Tell me what you think!
I do not own any of the characters (except for Alex and any other original characters) and I do not own any of the story lines.
Chapter 17: Imagine
Alex's eyes fluttered open and she sat up in her bed. She glanced at the clock beside her and saw that it was 2:55 AM. She sighed and rubbed her forehead. She thought of the dream she had just had about a young man in Michigan.
"I hate nightmares," she muttered to herself.
She sighed and laid her head back down on her pillow. Her eyes had just shut once more when she felt Sam shoot up in bed beside her. She sat up then too and watched as Sam kicked off his blankets and turned on the bedside lamp. Dean cringed at the light and rolled over onto his other side. Sam walked around the room, grabbed a duffel bag, and began shoving clothes into it.
"Sam, what are you doing?" asked Alex.
"We have to go. Right now."
Sam threw Alex her jacket and threw Dean's jacket on the foot of Dean's bed. Dean groaned. Alex sighed and watched Sam scramble around the room, throwing clothes and weapons into the duffel bag. He disappeared into the bathroom for a few seconds. He came back out carrying toothpaste and little shampoo bottles. He looked at Dean and Alex, who were still in their beds.
"Let's go!" yelled Sam.
He walked over and yanked the covers off of Dean's body. Dean gave Sam the finger and Alex stood up slowly, grabbing some of her clothes and throwing them in a pile onto the bed. She sat next to Dean on the edge of his bed as she watched Sam walk around furiously.
"C'mon, Dean. Sammy wants to go somewhere. You won't let him touch your car, right?"
At the mention of his car, Dean sat up swiftly.
"Fuck no. Sam, don't touch my car!"
Dean grabbed a pair of jeans off the back of a chair and entered the bathroom to change. Alex smiled and picked out her own clothes.
Dean yawned as he drove, Sam in the passenger seat and Alex trying to go back to sleep in the backseat. Sam was on the phone, aggressively speaking to the man on the other end of the call.
"Hurry up then!" yelled Sam, clicking "END" on his cell phone and throwing it onto the dashboard angrily.
"Sammy, relax. I'm sure it was just a regular nightmare," said Dean.
"It felt different, real. Like when I dreamt about our old house. And Jessica."
Alex bit her lip, thinking about the nightmares she had also had about Jessica and their old house.
"Well, yeah. That makes sense. Our house, your girlfriend," said Dean, raising his eyebrows.
"Yeah. I mean, why would you have dreams about some guy in Michigan?" asked Alex.
"I don't know," said Sam, picking up his phone again and holding it back up to his ear. He redialed the previous number and then listened to the man on the other end, writing down a name and address on a piece of paper in his lap. He hung up his phone again and looked over at Dean.
"It checks out. How far are we?"
"A couple hours," said Dean.
Sam looked straight ahead out the window.
"Drive faster."
Dean pulled up to the address that Sam had written down hours later. They saw a crowd forming, along with an ambulance, a few paramedics, and a body bag being zipped shut. Sam got out of the car as soon as it came to a stop. Alex and Dean followed him and they stood with the crowd.
"What happened?" asked Dean, looking at the woman next to him.
"Suicide. I can't believe it," said the woman beside him, shaking her head sadly.
"Did you know him?" asked Sam.
The woman nodded.
"Saw him every Sunday at St. Augustine. He always seemed so normal."
She shrugged her shoulders as she watched the ambulance drive away.
"Guess you never know what's really going on behind closed doors."
"Guess not. How are they saying it happened?" asked Alex.
"They found him in the garage. Locked inside his car with the engine running."
"Do you know about what time?"
"Oh, it just happened an hour or two ago. His poor family. I can't even imagine what they're going through."
Sam glanced up at the house and saw a woman sobbing profusely on the front porch. He shook his head and walked away from the crowd over to the Impala. Alex and Dean followed him shortly after.
"Sam, we got here as fast as we could," said Dean.
"No, not fast enough. Why would I even have these premonitions if I couldn't save him?"
"I don't know," answered Dean honestly.
Alex looked at Sam.
"Sammy, I'm worried about you. I mean, we are twins and now you're having weird dreams?"
Sam said nothing, just stared back at the poor woman who was still openly sobbing on her front porch.
"C'mon, we'll pick this up in the morning. Talk to the family, look at the house," said Dean.
He opened his car door.
"Dean, the family is devastated. They won't want to talk to us," said Alex.
"Yeah, you're right. So we'll have to find someone they will talk to."
Alex sighed and climbed into the car.
Alex was lying on her bed the next morning, her head hanging off the edge of the bed. She laughed as Sam and Dean stepped out of the bathroom wearing priest clothes.
"Really? Priests?"
Sam and Dean glared at her.
"Just shut up. Now, salt the windows and doors when we leave, alright?"
Alex nodded. She sat up and Sam and Dean each kissed her forehead before they left, Alex locking the door behind them and grabbing the salt off of the table.
Sam stood on the front porch of the house with Dean. He rang the doorbell and then stepped back.
"Man, this has to be a whole new low for us," said Sam.
Dean smirked and watched as the door opened. A middle-aged man stood in the doorway, looking at them curiously.
"Hello. I'm Father Simmons and this is Father Freely. We're the new junior priests over at St. Augustine's. May we come in?" asked Dean.
The man nodded and stepped aside, letting them in. They followed him inside to a living room.
"We're sorry for your loss. It's times like these when the Lord's guidance is most needed," said Dean.
"Look, don't pitch that stuff to me. My brother's dead," said the man gruffly.
"Roger," scolded a woman as she entered the room.
This was the same woman they had seen only hours earlier, sobbing on her front porch.
The man shook his head, grumbling under his breath, and walked up the stairs as Sam and Dean turned to the woman.
"I'm sorry for him. He's just really upset. Would you like some coffee?" she asked.
"That'd be great," said Sam, smiling warmly.
The woman walked back into the kitchen and started a pot of coffee. Sam and Dean sat next to each other on the couch and waited for her to return. Only a few minutes later, she came in carrying two coffee mugs. She handed them each a mug and Sam and Dean took a sip from their mugs before setting them down on the coffee table in front of them.
"It's so wonderful of you to stop by. The support of the church means so much."
"Of course," said Sam.
The woman sat across from them on a loveseat.
"So, Ms. Miller, did your husband have a history of depression or anything of the sort?" asked Dean.
"No. We had our ups and downs like everyone, but we were happy."
Her eyes filled with tears, but she continued.
"I just don't understand how Jim could do something like this."
Her tears finally spilled over her eyelids and down her face.
"I'm so sorry you had to find him like that," said Sam.
"Actually, our son, Max, was the one that found him."
Ms. Miller pointed to Max, who was in the kitchen. His back was facing the three of them, but they could all see him making himself some lunch.
"Would you mind if I go and talk to him?" asked Sam.
Ms. Miller shook her head and Sam walked into the kitchen to talk to Max. Dean reached beside him and grabbed a Kleenex from the box beside him, handing it to Ms. Miller. She took it from him.
"You have a lovely home. How long have you lived here?"
"We moved in about five years ago."
"The only problem with these old houses…"
Dean shook his head, trailing off.
"You probably have tons of headaches," he said, looking over at Ms. Miller.
She cocked her head to the side with confusion.
"Like what?"
"Weird leaks, electrical shortages."
She thought for a second and then shook her head.
"No, nothing. It's been perfect."
"Huh. May I use your restroom?"
"Sure. It's just up the stairs to the right."
Dean smiled and stood up, heading for the stairs.
Sam stood next to Max in the kitchen.
"So, what was your dad like?" asked Sam.
"Just a normal dad."
"Yeah. And you live at home now?"
"Um, yeah. I'm tryin' to save up for school, that's why."
"So when you found your dad-"
"I woke up, heard the engine running. I don't know why he did it."
"I know it's rough. Losing a parent."
Sam looked at Max, but Max didn't look at him.
Alex sighed and changed the channel on the TV. She sighed as she saw an episode of Boy Meets World that had been on earlier in the day. She turned the TV off and looked at the ceiling. It was white with a few weird stains across it. Alex expelled a breath of air and flopped over onto her stomach, her chin resting on a pillow. She grabbed her phone from beside the pillow and scrolled down to her contact list. She stopped when she got to Kellan's name. She sighed, realizing she had never actually said goodbye to him. She hit the green call button and it dialed the number. She held the phone to her ear and listened to it ring.
Kellan sighed and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Alex. His eyebrows knit together in confusion. It had been over a month since she had just up and left and Kellan had returned home. He flipped the phone open and held it up to his ear.
"Hello?" he said.
Alex bit her lip as she waited for Kellan to answer.
"Hello?" said a gruff male voice on the other end of the call.
Alex grinned and her stomach flopped over.
"Hello? Kellan?"
"Yeah… Alex?"
"Oh my God, how are you?" asked Alex.
"I'm good. Still a little bitter that my potential girlfriend just up and left without saying goodbye, though."
Alex sighed into the phone sadly.
"I'm really sorry. My brothers came and it was an emergency. I had to go with them."
"Yeah. Well, is there a reason you're calling? Something wrong?"
"No, no. I just… wanted to hear your voice, I guess."
"Well, I-"
"Kellan, let's go!" said a feminine voice in the background of his call.
Alex's eyes instantly became watery when she heard the female voice in the background.
"Um, I'll just… let you go then," said Alex.
"Alex, no. It's-"
Alex hung up her cell phone and threw it on her bed, screaming into her pillow.
Kellan sighed as he heard the call end.
"Fuck!"
He threw his phone against the wall, completely shattering it and then he ran a hand through his hair.
"Whoa, calm down, honey," said an older woman who was cleaning mugs behind the bar.
"I'm sorry, Mom. It was Alex, that girl I told you about? Remember?"
The woman nodded, a small, serene smile forming on her lips.
"Anyway, when Brittany came in and told me it was time to go, Alex thought it was my girlfriend or something. She hung up on me."
The woman nodded with understanding.
"Well, if it's meant to be, it'll happen," said the woman.
Kellan nodded. He looked over at the door to the bar as it opened, sunlight streaming in.
"Kellan, let's go, man," said a young man, close to Kellan's age.
"I'm coming, Joe."
Kellan grabbed his jacket from off of a bar stool and kissed the woman's cheek on his way towards the front door.
"Be careful!" called the woman as Kellan and Joe walked out the door.
Sam was sitting at the table later that night, looking for information on his laptop while Dean and Alex sat on the bed. Dean was cleaning one of his guns while Alex sat next to him, moping.
"So, what do you have?" asked Dean.
"A whole lot of nothin'. Nothing bad has happened in the Miller house since it was built," said Sam.
"What about the land?" asked Alex.
"No graveyards, tribal lands, battlefields. Nothin'."
Sam shut his laptop and walked over to them, sitting next to Alex. Alex began rubbing his back comfortingly. Dean put his gun back together.
"Hey, I told you I searched that house up and down. There were no cold spots, no sulfur scent, nothin'."
He set his clean gun aside and reached down, grabbing a different one from out of his duffel bag.
"So, you think Jim Miller killed himself and Sam's dream was just some freakish coincidence?"
Dean sighed.
"I don't know."
Alex continued rubbing Sam's back as she began to see visions of a man in her head. She sighed, realizing she was having one of her freaky dreams like Sam and knew that Sam's was coming soon.
"Yeah, well. Maybe it's, uh… connected to Jim in some other way," said Sam, grabbing his head then and closing his eyes.
"What's wrong? Your back is really tense," said Alex.
She removed her hand from Sam's back as he fell to his knees on the ground in immense pain, Alex crouching down in front of him. She grabbed his arms and Dean crouched down next to her.
"Sam, talk to me!" cried Alex.
Sam looked over at her.
"It's happening again. Somethin's gonna kill Roger Miller."
Dean drove the car as fast as he could to Roger's apartment. Sam's face was deathly pale as he spoke slowly and quietly.
"Are you gonna be okay? If you're gonna hurl, I'll pull the car over," said Dean, glancing at Sam every few seconds.
Alex rolled her eyes.
"I'm fine. Just drive," answered Sam.
After a few minutes, Alex looked at Dean.
"I'm scared, Dean. I mean, the nightmares were bad enough and now Sam's seeing things when he's awake. And it seems painful."
"He'll be fine, sis."
"What is it about the Millers anyway? Why am I connected to them? Why the hell is this happening to me?" asked Sam.
Alex bit her lip, ready to tell them about her own visions, but Dean spoke first.
"I don't know, but we'll figure it out. We face the unexplainable every day. This is just another thing."
"It's never been one of us before. Doesn't it freak you out?" asked Alex.
Dean looked at the road and shook his head.
They climbed up the fire escape quickly and glanced up at Roger's window every few seconds. They got to the top and looked at the window to see that it was now covered in blood. Sam sighed and Dean handed him a rag he pulled from out of his pocket.
"Start wipin' down your fingerprints. Go, go."
Sam began wiping down their prints, Alex behind him as Dean entered the apartment.
"There was nothin', just like at the Miller house," said Dean as they walked back to the car only a few minutes later.
"I saw a dark shape in my vision," said Sam.
"Maybe it's a vengeful spirit," said Alex.
They all entered the car and Dean started it up, pulling away and getting back on the road.
"Do you think Max is in trouble then?" asked Alex.
"Well, I know one thing we have in common with this family. Our families are cursed," said Sam.
"Our family is not cursed. We just have our dark spots," said Dean.
Alex laughed.
"Our dark spots are pretty dark," said Sam.
Dean sighed and stepped on the accelerator.
Sam and Dean were dressed in their priest outfits, talking to Max at the Miller home once more.
"People kept coming over and bringing casseroles. I finally had to tell them to stop."
Max sat down in a dining room chair and Dean and Sam did as well, following his lead.
"How you holding up?" asked Sam.
"Okay."
"Your dad and your uncle were close," said Dean.
"Yeah, I guess. I mean, they were brothers. Used to hang out all the time when I was little."
"But not much lately?"
"No, it's not that. It's just, we used to be neighbors when I was a kid. We lived across town."
"So, how was it in the house when you were a kid?"
"Fine. Why?"
"All good memories?" asked Dean.
"Yeah. We were totally normal. Happy," said Max.
"Good. That's good."
Alex sighed as her phone rang again. She glanced down at the caller ID and saw that it was Kellan calling her for the third time in the last hour.
"Ugh!" she yelled.
She opened her phone and put it up to her ear.
"Hello?"
"Alex? Listen, I need to expla-"
"No, I understand. You've moved on. Now, can you stop calling me?"
"No. I want to explain."
"Please, Kellan. I don't want to talk to you anymore. Please, just leave me alone."
Kellan sighed, running a hand over his scruffy face.
"Fine. I'll stop calling."
"Thank you. Goodbye, Kellan."
"Bye, Alex."
Alex hung up and threw her phone down onto the bed.
Kellan hung up his phone and stuffed it in his jeans pocket.
"Who was that?" asked Brittany, hanging out of the car window.
"This girl that I like. We had a thing and then she just up and left. Now she won't even talk to me cause she thinks I've moved on."
"Oh. That totally blows."
Kellan nodded and removed the gas pump from the gas tank.
"Y'all ready to go?" asked Joe, stepping out of the convenience store and over to the car.
"Yeah. Let's go."
Kellan climbed in the car and Joe took off down the road.
Alex stood in between Sam and Dean as they talked to one of the Millers' old neighbors later on that same day.
"How long have you lived here?" asked Sam.
"A few years. Why? You lookin' to buy?"
"No, we were just wondering if you might recall a family that used to live across the street, I believe," said Dean.
"Yeah, the Millers and a little boy named Max," said Alex.
The man's face turned sad as he talked.
"Yeah, I remember. So, what's this about? The kid okay?"
"What do you mean?" asked Sam.
"I've never seen a kid treated liked that. I'd hear Miller yellin' from across the street. He was a mean drunk and he used to beat the tar outta Max. All kinds of bruises and he even broke his arm two times."
Alex shuddered as a headache came on and a vision started. She glanced at Sam, who was holding his head.
"And this happened regularly?" asked Dean.
"Practically every day. The brother was just as likely to take a swing at Max, but the worst was the step mom. She did nothing."
Dean asked the man another question, but Alex didn't notice as she recovered from her headache.
"Thank you for your time," said Dean.
He shook the man's hand and grabbed Sam's arm, leading him to the car.
"Sammy, look at me," urged Alex.
"Max is doing it. Everything I've been seeing," explained Sam as Dean drove well over the speed limit.
"How's he been pullin' it off?" asked Dean.
"Telekinesis."
"So, this whole time you've been connecting to Max?" asked Alex.
"I guess."
Sam simply shrugged. Dean parked the car on the curb right outside of the Miller house. He grabbed a gun from the backseat and stuck it in his waistband. Alex and Sam did the same and they all ran towards the house. Dean pushed open the front door of the Miller house and rushed inside with Alex and Sam. They ran into the kitchen to see Max talking to his step mom.
"Fathers?" asked Mrs. Miller.
"Max, can we talk to you for a minute?" asked Sam.
Max looked to his mom, who nodded. Dean led the way back out to the living room, Max behind him. When they passed by a mirror hanging in the hallway, Max glanced at it and saw Dean's gun in the waistband of his jeans. Max used his telekinesis and slammed the front door shut with his mind. Dean whirled around to face him as Max closed the blinds. Dean pulled his gun out, but Max took it from him. Sam and Alex were behind Max and they looked at Dean. Max flung his stepmother into the kitchen and she flew through the air, hitting the very corner of the counter with the back of her head.
"Max, calm down. We just wanna talk, please. Just hear me out," pleaded Sam.
Max turned to Sam.
"Five minutes."
Sam nodded and they took a seat in the living room. Alex and Dean ran into the kitchen, helping Mrs. Miller stand up and they walked upstairs.
Max sat on a loveseat across from Sam, who was sitting on the couch. Max was using his telekinesis abilities to spin a letter opener around on the coffee table as Sam talked.
"Max, this has to stop. You need to let your step mom go."
"Why?"
"Did she beat you?"
"No, but she never tried to save me."
"Look. What they did to you growing up. They deserve to be punished."
Max stopped spinning the letter opener and it clattered on the table's surface. He looked up at Sam.
"Growing up? Try last week."
Max stood up and lifted up his shirt to reveal a purple and black bruise. It went all the way up his right side. Sam winced. Max sat back down.
"I'm really sorry," said Sam.
"My dad blamed me for everything. His job, my mom's death."
"Why would he blame you for her death?" asked Sam, his head tilted to the side with confusion.
"Because she died in my nursery while I was asleep in my crib. As if that makes it my fault."
"She died in your nursery?"
"Yeah. There was a fire and he said she died in some insane way. He said she burned up, pinned to the ceiling."
Sam's eyes widened and he leaned forward toward Max.
"Max, that happened to my mom, too. Exactly the same. My nursery, my crib. My dad saw her on the ceiling. The only difference is that I have a twin."
Max scoffed.
"Your dad must have been as drunk as mine."
"No, the same thing killed our mothers."
"That's impossible."
"Did your abilities start six months ago?"
Max nodded hesitantly.
"For some reason, you and I are chosen," said Sam.
"For what?"
"I don't know. But, my brother, my sister, and I are hunting for your mom's killer. We could find answers, but you gotta let us go, Max. You gotta let your stepmother go."
"No. I have nightmares about what they did to me."
Max stood up and began heading for the stairs, but Sam ran in front of him.
"The nightmares won't end, Max."
"I'm sorry," said Max. He used his abilities and flung Sam across the room into a coat closet. He moved the dresser in front of the doors so that Sam couldn't escape. He walked up the stairs, Sam banging on the closet doors and yelling.
Sam grabbed his head as he saw a vision.
Max was in the bedroom with Dean, Alex, and Mrs. Miller. Max grabbed the gun that he had taken from Dean earlier and held it up to Mrs. Miller's head. Dean stepped in front of her and Max pulled the trigger, Dean falling to the ground as Max shot him in the head. Alex screamed as she watched Dean fall.
"No!" cried Sam.
He pushed on the closet doors and they opened easily. Sam ran up the stairs.
Alex gasped quietly as she saw the vision of Dean getting shot. She listened as Max tramped up the stairs and opened the bedroom door. Dean pushed Alex behind him and went to stand in front of Mrs. Miller as Max aimed the gun. Suddenly, Sam burst into the room.
"Max, please don't. We can help you. But what you're doing isn't gonna fix anything," said Sam, his eyes trained on Max's face.
"You're right," said Max.
He pointed the gun at himself and pulled the trigger. Alex flinched as the gun went off and blood spattered all over her light pink shirt.
Alex folded one of her shirts and set it in her duffel bag the next morning. She watched as Sam and Dean did the same with their clothes.
"Hey, I've been thinking," said Sam.
"Oh, no. That's not good," teased Alex.
Sam ignored her.
"Why did the demon kill Mom and Jess and Max's mom?"
"I have no idea," said Dean.
He folded another one of his shirts and put it in his duffel bag.
"Do you think it was after me and Max?"
Dean and Alex stopped packing and they looked at Sam.
"I mean, we both had abilities. Maybe it was after us for some reason."
"Sam. If it wanted you, it would've taken you," said Dean.
"Yeah, it's not about you," said Alex.
"Then what is it about?"
"It's about that damn thing that did this to our family. The thing that we're gonna find and kill. That's it," said Dean.
"Alright, but there's something else, too," said Sam.
"Oh, Jesus. What?" asked Dean.
"When Max locked me in that closet, he put a huge dresser in front of it. I moved it. Like… Max."
"I'm sure it won't happen again," said Dean.
He turned to his bag and zipped it closed. He shrugged on his jacket and headed for the car. Alex zipped her own bag closed and stepped over to Sam. He was packing and wouldn't look at her. Alex touched his arm as he set a pair of jeans into his bag. He sighed and turned to her. Alex wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace. Sam rested his chin on the top of her head.
"You'll never turn into Max. You have me and Dean and nothing bad will ever happen."
Alex leaned up on her toes and kissed Sam's cheek. Sam smiled and Alex stepped out of his hold. She grabbed her duffel bag and headed to the car where Dean was waiting. Sam took one last glance around the room and shut the door before climbing into the car with Alex and Dean.
Alex watched as Max turned the gun on himself and pulled the trigger. The shot rang out and Max's blood spattered onto her shirt.
Alex opened her eyes and shot up. She took in her surroundings and found that she was in the backseat of the Impala. Dean looked at her through the rear-view mirror.
"Alex, what's wrong?"
Sam looked back at her over his shoulder.
"I keep seeing Max blow his brains out and I can't sleep."
She ran a hand through her long hair and sighed, lying back down on the seat.
"Do you want me to come back there?" asked Sam.
Alex nodded and Sam unbuckled his seat-belt. He kicked off his shoes and climbed into the backseat over the center console. He laid behind Alex and wrapped his arm around her waist. Alex closed her eyes and Sam did, too. Dean glanced at them in the mirror and smiled.