"So... what do we do here?" Dean asked.
"I already told you, I have absolutely no plan."
"No, I mean...we're in the middle of nowhere. There's nothing to do really."
"Okay, well aside from not being near restaurants or whatever, it's not that dissimilar from a motel, dude. There's TV, movies, books. It was a mistake not to get groceries, but I have food, booze...I mean, what exactly would you do if we weren't here?"
Dean shrugged. "Well...I mean..." He waggled his eyebrows. "I'd probably do all that but after picking up a chick in some bar."
"Cool. Well, you're more than welcome. There's one bar in town although I'm not sure you'll have a lot of options. Maybe try Livingston."
He poked her in the ribs. "You mean, I don't have a chance with you all of the sudden?"
"That's what's on your mind right now?"
"You said it," Dean stood up, taking her hand in his, "we're stuck here, and we don't have a plan so..."
"I think I'm going to eat, shower, and sleep before I focus on...entertainment."
Dean chuckled. "Fair enough. I'll see what I can do about dinner." He squeezed her hand before shrugging out of his jacket, tossing it across the back of the armchair he just vacated and, heading towards the kitchen.
Her features creased with confusion for a moment before she remembered he had been here before and seemed to recall the layout. Mae watched as he disappeared into the other room before shaking her head with a grin. Dean Winchester was definitely a distraction, but she still couldn't deny the attraction she felt towards him. It was too soon to act on it, though. They had more pressing matters to deal with.
She turned her attention back to Sam, who was now lightly snoring on the couch. She couldn't really say if he was okay or not, but he didn't seem as bad as he could have. Mae couldn't help the pang of guilt she felt for getting him involved in this mess.
As she watched Sam, she couldn't help but wonder what was coming next, how they would know if it was safe, and what else they might be wrong about if this situation with the kitsune resolved the way it laid things out. There would be more hunts to come, but right now she just wanted this kitsune to ascend or make it clear that they needed to put it down.
"Mae?" Dean called from the kitchen.
She shook herself from her thoughts and made her way to the kitchen. As she entered, she noticed that Dean had started looking through the fridge.
"All you have in here is beer."
"Yeah, I don't keep fresh food on hand when I don't know how long I'll be on the road. I usually hit the store before I come home, you know, when I don't have a creature riding shotgun."
"Fair enough but what should we eat."
"Something easy." Mae stepped up beside him, bumping his hip with hers to move him out of the way, "Since when do you cook?"
Dean grinned back at her. "What can I say? I'm a man of many talents."
Mae arched an eyebrow as she took a frozen pizza out of the freezer. "Great, because it looks like we might be here for a while."
"No offense but I want this thing to do whatever it came here to do quick."
Opening the box, she shifted around Dean. "I don't think they track time the same way we do. What's a few weeks or a month to something that can live hundreds of years."
'And you still think this was a good plan."
"No. It was just a plan. But I still believe this one doesn't want to kill people or fuck with us."
"Let's hope you're right. You know, for being a hunter, you have a pretty nice kitchen," Dean commented.
"Why wouldn't I?" Mae replied, a hint of defensiveness in her voice.
"I'm not judging, I'm impressed," Dean said with a smile.
Mae smiled back before turning her attention back to the pizza. She preheated the oven and slid the pizza in. As they waited for it to cook, they chatted about nothing in particular, nothing of note.
When the pizza was ready, they grabbed slices and took seats at the table just off the kitchen. Dean offered a glance back at Sam before starting to eat. They ate in silence for a few moments before Dean spoke up. "Hey, can I ask you something?"
Mae nodded, taking another bite of pizza. "Sure, what's up?"
"I just...I don't know. I feel like we've been through a lot already. And I know I'm not exactly Mr. Sensitive or whatever, but I just wanted to say...I'm glad you called me and we're, you know, together."
Mae felt an unexpected jolt of excitement course her body as Dean's words. She braced a bit though, waiting for the other shoe to drop. "I... thanks. But that wasn't really a question."
He smiled at her. "I know we've got a lot of shit to deal with, but... can we just start this thing between us over again? I know I've been...all over the place and we're...I'm..." he sighed, "Fuck this is awkward."
"As much as I like to watch you squirm, I think I get what you're saying."
"Good, because I'm terrible at this." he said with a bit of a self-depreciating laugh, "I just...I don't want to fuck this up again. I love you and I don't want to lose you." Dean's voice was low, serious.
Mae couldn't help the smile that spread across her face. "I love you too."
They sat in silence for a few moments, the only sounds in the room were the soft chewing noises as they ate. The relaxed and almost normal atmosphere was again tinged with tension, charged with the unspoken desire they both felt.
Mae put down her pizza and regarded him seriously. "Dean, we've done this dance before. We both know this isn't just something we can start over like nothing has happened. We've had a really messed up relationship for a while, but that doesn't mean we should just forget it and move on like nothing happened."
"I know that. I'm not saying we should forget. I just want to...try again. Start fresh. And whatever happens, we'll deal with it together. I know this last thing was on me...I wanted...well, we've been over it. If you need me to apologize again-."
"No, I get it. I'm not looking for you to do anything else. I just...I don't want to go down this road again if we're not on the same page because between how I feel about you and the sex...If you're looking to keep me safe, then we either have to stay the hell away from each other or be all in."
She was drawn to Dean like no other, to the detriment of anything she wanted to do. The need to be with him, near him was unlike the way she'd ever felt about someone, casual or serious. And she had always known she either had to be with him completely or not at all. If either of them doubted that being together was the right thing to do, it tormented both of them.
But as she looked into Dean's eyes, she knew if his worry and doubt had passed this time, she'd fall right back into bed with him. Not that she had held back much so far. After everything, after all the push and pull between staying apart or together, it didn't matter. She wanted Dean just as badly as he wanted her.
Dean's smile grew wider as he stood up from the table, moving closer to her. "I'm all in."
Mae leaned forward across the table, her eyes locked onto his. "Okay."
Dean's expression brightened, "Okay?"
"Okay, let's try again. But this time, let's make it count," Mae said, a smile creeping onto her lips.
Mae stood up as well, meeting him in the middle. They came together in a deep, passionate kiss that was a long time coming. The kiss was urgent, filled with a longing that had been simmering between them for far too long. Dean's hand came up to cup the back of Mae's head, deepening the kiss. The heat between them was palpable, the tension that had been building finally giving way.
They cleaned up the dishes and trash from the impromptu meal. Mae set the plates in the sink, not wanting to dishes yet. Dean came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Should we stay down here tonight?"
"I wanna sleep in a real bed, not a chair or the floor. Do you want to move Sam upstairs? Or we could set you both up downstairs."
"You don't want to stay together."
"I think Sam is fine down here. It's not that big a house so we could sleep upstairs."
Dean pressed his lips against her ear as he thought. Mae leaned back into him, feeling the warmth of his body against hers. "Yeah, I suppose you're right."
"I have an idea to help keep tabs on him though."
"I suppose I need to let you go then."
"It would be easier but..." she replied, turning around to face him.
Leaning in, Dean kissed her again, their bodies pressed close together. Mae could feel Dean's arousal growing against her.
"Okay, okay...we need to not do this right now."
"Yeah," Dean said, almost pained to pull away from her.
"Check the doors and windows. There's salt in the cupboard if anything needs more." She pointed over her shoulder to where he could find salt, among other supplies.
Slipping out of his grasp, she made her way back to the living room. Dean didn't follow her, instead moving to grab the salt and follow her instructions. As he checked the kitchen and dining room windows, he caught sight of her taking a photo off the fireplace mantel and opening the back to retrieve something. Mae unlocked one of the mystery doors Sam and Dean had noticed the last time they were there, placing the key back behind the picture on the mantel.
Dean continued the task, momentarily wondering why the house had so many windows as he moved into the living room. Mae returned from the room she had unlocked, leaving it and the door next to it open. She placed the bundle of items on the coffee table, then turned back to Sam.
First, she took off his shoes, setting them beside the front door. She took off her own boots, setting them next to Sam's shoes. Then, Mae eased his head up, putting a more comfortable pillow under his head and finally, spread the comforter over his long body.
She pat Sam's face until he woke up, still fairly out of it. His eyes took a moment to focus on her before he muttered something that could have been 'what?'
"Sam, Dean and I will be upstairs. There's water on the table if you want it, bathroom is the door just right of the fireplace. If you need anything," She waggled the walkie talking in front of him, "just let us know."
Mae wrote a short note with the same info just in case he didn't really understand what she told him, leaving it beside the glass of water, walkie talkie, and TV remote.
She stood and checked in with Dean. "Good?"
"Yeah, good. Everything seems solid," he said as he shook the salt container lightly. "Anything I missed?"
"No, everything else is covered, plus salt is hardly the only protective measure I take."
"So I gathered. I guess you're not going to take off my boots?"
"Next time you're unconscious, totally. Now, I'm going to get my shower because I feel really gross. Shut off the lights before you come up."
When he opened the shower door, she didn't jump. She may have been surprised he decided to join her but not scared. He was used to Mae's edginess, the paranoid that always framed the outermost of her personality. But not here, while she was in her home. In fact, it was seeing her here that he realized how guarded she was everywhere else. But she stopped her movement, cautiously but not defensive.
Dean placed his hands on her shoulders, sliding them down her water slicked arms before placing a kiss to the soft flesh of her shoulder. He pressed his lips softly to her skin, alternating that with light nips and laps of his tongue. She sighed, wistfully, longingly as his arms wrapped around her body. Both his hands pressed flat against her stomach as his mouth moved up along her neck, centimeter by centimeter. She let her head fall against his bare shoulder. She reached up to run her wet hand through his dry hair.
Out of the shower, he didn't want to let her go, as if she would disappear or he would wake up if he stopped touching her. He pulled her wet body against hers, kissing her hard.
She melted against him. Logically, she knew this was the best they could hope for; moments, perhaps even evenings they would steal away together in between hunts. And in this moment, that was enough.
"Fuck." His face pinched together as he pulled away from her. "I left all our gear in the car."
"You afraid to go outside?" There was a hint of teasing in her voice.
"There is a dangerous creature just outside your front door."
"I drove the majority of the day with it right next to me."
"It already possessed someone."
"It's not interested in you. Do you need me to go out for you."
"I don't know why you think this is funny or why you think there's no risk."
"I don't. I don't think that it wants to kill us or possess us at this point. But listen, if you didn't notice, your clothes are all wet now," she pointed to his pile of discarded clothes that had been the casualty of his grabbing her rather than either of them toweling off. "So," she continued, "I'll go outside, and you keep watch. If something unusual happens, you'll shoot me."
"Oh, what a great way to end the evening."
"You think this is real fucking funny, don't you?"
She grinned, "I think it's hilarious. Besides, you have nice legs." She swatted his butt playfully.
They had dressed to go downstairs. Or more specifically, she had put on sweatpants and a tee-shirt and because he didn't want to put his wet clothes back on, she lent him her short ducky bathrobe. As he was significantly broader shouldered than she was, it was only marginally more modest than wearing nothing at all. He was grateful it wasn't a windy evening.
Standing at her front door in a too short ducky bathrobe holding a gun, Dean did wonder if perhaps he was too intent on believing the creature had ulterior motives. He didn't want to be right on this one. "You good?"
"Yep. You're still the last creature that's been in me."
She made her way to his car, unlocking the trunk and grabbing the boys' duffel bags before moving to her car and bags. Because she didn't want to spend more time outside than necessary, she only made one trip, even if it was a bit more than she could easily take in all at once. But she was still able to make it back inside, ducking under Dean's arm as he held the door open, scanning the front of the house for any sign of anything.
Mae dropped the bags in the foyer. "There, do you think I'm still me?"
"You're still a smart ass. What, you're not going to help me with my bag?"
"You're pretty but not that pretty." Mae pressed a hand to his cheek before kissing him softly. "C'mon, let's get some sleep."
