"What are you doing?" Sam asked frowning at his brother. They had stopped over in Albia, Iowa for a lunch break. They had received coordinates leading them to Rockford, Illinois from what apparently was John and decided to head straight there...after a little argument between the brothers. Sam didn't see the point of blindly following random coordinates and Dean was all for believing it was John. They have driven away the early morning hours and if they didn't stop for food, Dean was going to get more and more pisser.
"Missouri said something about Callie that got me thinking." Dean looked up and shrugged.
"I'm going to call her real quick check in and see how's she's doing." Sam saw the strain the simple thought of calling Callie on his brother's face and clapped him on the shoulder before getting out of the car. He really wanted to cheer or congratulate Dean in finding the guts to do something he obviously had wanted to do for weeks but he didn't think that would go down.
"I'll go in and order lunch and you come in when you are ready. I'll tell them to hold off until you're in." He said simply. Dean threw him a grateful look and Sam smiled before shutting the door and walking into the diner. Something Missouri said obvious shook Dean up. Hopefully it had nothing to do with Callie being hurt. He didn't like the thought of the kind, sassy girl he met get hurt again. He felt like he knew her better. He already knew she was funny and smart but hearing Dean tell the story of how they met and a few other tidbits he had weaselled out of his older brother like how she had to have music playing when cooking and her baked goods were the best Dean had ever had, made Sam feel closer already. He just wanted his brother to stop being such a jerk and just get his girl already. He only wanted his brother to be happy.
Meanwhile outside the diner, Dean paced outside the car, weighing his phone in his hands. Missouri said he needed to talk to her. If she was in trouble she would have said something. He knew the number... Why didn't he just call? Hwy hadn't he just called weeks ago? The worst she could do would be to hang up. Taking a deep breath, he dialled her number.
"Hello?" Her voice sent a wave of peace over him. He heard a loud beeping and people talking around her. Was she out?
"Uh hi. It's Dean. Dean Winchester? From Wisconsin?" He felt like an idiot.
"Dean?" She sounded so shocked he almost laughed. Well it had been awhile he guessed.
"Yes remember me?" He chuckles nervously. Please let her remember me.
"Callie, we need you in room 203." A voice echoed through the phone.
"Ah yeah course sure thing. Sorry I do remember you, how could I forget?" You'd be surprised Dean thought.
"Callie!"
"You sound distracted." He hoped she was just distracted and not regretting giving him her number.
"Uh look Dean sorry… can't do this right now I'll talk to you whenever ok? Great thanks." the dial tone rang in his ear. She hung up on him. He pulled the phone away and stared at it. She was never normally too busy to talk to him. What the hell? He pocketed his phone and took a deep breath. He shouldn't have called her. Now the hole in his heart was just wider. She probably regretted giving him her number and now he will be the butt end joke of her friends. Fantastic. He shoved his hands in his pockets and heading towards the diner. This day just got shitter.
PAGE BREAK_
The shrill of the phone tore him from his sleep
"Someone better be dying or I'm going to kill them myself. Dean gruffly answered the phone. It had been a rough hunt. The coordinates that their dad had sent them was to an old abandoned asylum and man, did that ghost have anger issues. Not only had the place been a hot spot for teenager douchebags to stay on dares but the ghosts of all those who had died at the hand of the crazy ass doctor still haunted the place. EMT was crazy, ghosts were trying to help and the good Doctor himself was nothing more than a sadistic creeper. He had made Sam turn on his brother and now there was another underlining rift between the two. Dean just wanted to sleep away the rest of the shitty day and forget it ever happened. He'd be happy to never see the inside of a nuthouse again.
"Oh crap…I'm sorry I forget most normal people are sleeping at this time." Callie's timid voice rang over the phone. He was instantly wake and moving to pull on a shirt.
"Callie? You ok? What's wrong?" he barked out.
"No no nothing I'm sorry! I just… wanted to apologise for being a bitch before." Dean felt his heart slow down.
"Oh." He moved towards the door. Sam was sitting up and reaching for his pants but Dean waved him off. No emergency he mouthed. Sam raised an eyebrow in question but Dean ignored him and pulled on his jacket.
"You're pissed. I get that. I'll let you go." She sounded so nervous. It was kind of cute.
"No! No no sorry I was sneaking out its fine." He said as he walked out the door, closing it quietly behind him.
"Oh."
"I don't want to keep Sam awake." Dean felt the need to explain. He heard her sigh in relief.
"So how you been?" Why was this so awkward? It's Callie for God sake.
"The usual. Busy with a side order of flat out. Got proposed today about 4 times." She laughed.
"Sounds classy." He grinned and slid down the wall next to the door. This was good. This was positive.
"Hmmm… brain injury ward. Always interesting. Hence the rushed bitch tones before. I'm on teaching duty and they are just..."
"Stupid?"
"Tip toeing the line between getting screamed at until they go deaf or getting a thermometer shoved in their eye." She sighed.
"Geez way to go graphic." Dean chuckled. She always had a fantastic imagination and he could always gage how angry or upset she was by the vivid mental images she came up with.
"You wanna know graphic? I had some scuzzy cheese ball today tell me slap me on the ass and tell me to go and get him a coffee…STAT. I am a nurse not his goddamn maid."
"I'm guessing he didn't mean STAT as in statim?" Dean felt proud that he actually knew the meaning of the word and why. Although all credit had to go to Callie who had told him many times that "stat was a abbreviation of the Latin word statim which meant immediately…and if anyone tells me to stat outside of the OR or ED I will punch them."
"I'm so impressed right now but no sadly his STAT meant shake that ass toots." He could almost hear the curl in her lip.
"Sounds like a real prize winner."
"Oh I swear to God if he wasn't my boss I would punch him so hard his dumb stupid doctor elite money hungry sexist pig of ancestors would feel it." He couldn't help himself. He erupted into loud laughs.
"Oh shush you." Callie said before giggling herself. It felt nice to laugh with her again and it did wonders to break the awkward tension.
"So, how's the memory hunt going?" he asked a few minutes after they had calmed down
"It's going. Turns out I'm allergic to shellfish... That wasn't around when I was a kid."
"Oh that's awkward."
"Especially when you go on a date to a seafood restaurant." Dean's heart sank. He knew it had been awhile but it still sucked.
"That must have sucked." Biting the bullet and being a man about it sucked also when all he wanted to do was demand she never date again.
"Not really it was great. He was an egotistical douche bag and swelling up like Harry potters aunt is a great excuse to leave early." She laughed.
He laughed. "You have a way with words." He sighed. "So why were you on a date with someone so bad?" The word date left a funny taste in his mouth
"A friend at the hospital has had her sister in law try and set her up for weeks with this guy and she finally caved but chickened out last minute so told me that if I went in her place she'd cover for me at any time whenever so I thought 'hey I haven't slept in like forever and I know I have a week of night and double shifts coming up' and hey free food right? So I agreed."
"Regret?" He smiled at her reasoning.
"So much regret. Swelling and almost choking was honestly the best part of the night." They laughed
"So how have you been?" She asked.
"Fine. We're good"
"Really?" He could practically feel her judging eyes.
"Yeah really really." She sighed loudly over the phone in what he hoped was relief.
"How's… work?"
"It's...ah..." Did he tell her the truth?
"You can tell me if you like …it's not like I would think you're crazy." He chuckled before launching into the story of what's happened so far. He had always been honest with her and now she kind of knew about it all what's the point in hiding it from her? He never liked lying to her…except when it came to her memory and their past.
Dean launched into the story of what has happened so far only leaving out the truly gruesome details. He didn't want to scare her.
"My god! Dean I'm so sorry. Are…are you ok?" she sounded so frightful for him. It warmed his heart in an odd way and made him remember the good old days.
"Yeah few bumps and bruises but I'm ok. Promise." He smiled softly. This felt good.
"So not what I meant." She groaned.
"I'm fine sugar. Just bone tired. " He yawned.
"I should let you go ..." She said softly
"Please don't. I honestly don't want to be doing anything else right now." And it was the truth. This was the most he had been at peace since seeing her all those months ago.
"I kinda have to anyway. My break is almost over. Stupid double shift. But if you really wanna..." She trailed off sounding embarrassed.
"Yes?" He was embarrassed at how eager he sounded.
"You can always call me tomorrow? I finish at 10 and it takes 10 minutes to get home ..."
"So I'll call you at 10:10?" Dean grinned. She called back and was asking him to call her back tomorrow? Could he do this? Could this actually happen?
"10:20. Give me 10 minutes to change into my pjs and pour a wine" she giggled.
"10:20 tomorrow night it is." Dean didn't think he could get rid of the grin if he tried.
"Be safe Dean."
"You too Callie" Silence fell between them.
"We really do this high school crap?" She laughed. Dean snorted
"Not if you hang up first."
"Oh god you're a dweeb!" she laughed again. "Okay I am going to go. I'll talk to you tomorrow ok?"
"Course you will. 10:20pm on the dot"
"Sounds great." Silence hung again before they both laughed.
"Okay okay for real I'm going" she giggled. "Bye Dean"
"Bye sugar" and she hung up. Dean closed his phone with a small snap and lent back against the wall near the door. She had called him back. She didn't just blow him off she actually called him back and wanted him to call her again tomorrow. He grinned and sighed. Maybe there was something into the second chance crap? Maybe he could attempt to make her love him all over again. Could it actually happen? He heard the door creak open and saw his brother poke his head out and look around before spotting him.
"What are you doing?" Sam asked.
"Sitting."
"No shit but why?"
"No reason."
"Who was on the phone?" Sam knew exactly who was on the phone but wanted to hear Dean admit it.
"No one important."
"Not even Callie?" Sam teased.
"Shut up Sam" Dean laughed. Nothing that could happen or be said right now could make the mood he was in vanish. Not even annoying little brothers.
"Really Dean? Late night phone calls to your girlfriend that's leaving you all dopey and smiley?" He reached out a hand and helped Dean up.
"Yeah yeah laugh it up collage boy you're just jealous." Dean was still grinning.
"Jealous? Of what? The dumb look on your face? Pfft please." Dean pushed him through the door chuckling.
"Get to bed you idiot." The brothers climbed back into their beds both with smiles but for totally different reasons. Sam was happy Dean was happy and Dean was happy that Callie wanted to talk to him. Both were hoping that maybe there was a second chance in the future.
"Goodnight jerk" Sam said rolling over with a bigger smile
"Night bitch" Dean faced the door and closed his eyes in content. Maybe things were looking up after all
AN: Please review.