Easy

"I don't want you coming."

"Well tough, I am, so deal with it, Dean." Jane said flatly, glancing at him from the corner of her eye as she filled shells with rock salt. "Ellen's going."

"Yeah, and she shouldn't be. She nearly died once, she doesn't need to be going for try number two." He shot back, not overly pleased when his wife merely shrugged. "Jane…"

She frowned, pushing away from the desk that took up the majority of the bedroom corner and stood. They had not had a very good afternoon and even now, she could hear preparations going on downstairs for their rapidly approaching road trip. Ellen being alive was a blessing, she had appeared in the junkyard, alive and demon-free. Bobby had tested for a rider of course, just to ensure that it was only Ellen and not Ellen plus one. And she had brought what Ash had intended to show Dean, a map.

From what she understood, they were about to go get their asses kicked again. Not that she would ever voice that out loud. A giant devil's trap… and they had to go make sure the chocolate center remained unwrapped. Bad analogy, but she didn't like thinking of the fact that there was a gate to hell and they were about to go visit it.

"I can't stay here and wait Dean. I've been doing that for months, and it's driving me crazy." She finally admitted. "This entire thing is driving me crazy." In a few months, she'd of been living this way for a year. It had been a hell of a time. Being demon jacked, seeing some truly bizarre crap, learning how to 'think like a hunter' but not actual be one, Sam dying…

His jaw tensed. "I suppose it is. You should be… anywhere but here, living normal." The idea of her going back to her 'life' seemed odd. He had gotten used to Jane being here, not always with him, but always within reach. Hell, he had even gotten somewhat used to the idea of being married, even if it were temporary.

Not that he had quit his flirting. If Jane wasn't around, he'd still take a second look, maybe banter back and forth, but he never took it anywhere. Not that he hadn't been tested a time or two. But he hadn't. It also helped that he had Sam along, helpfully reminding him –and the women he flirted with- that he had a 'gorgeous wife' waiting back home. A gorgeous, temporary wife.

"I don't think I was ever cut out for normal, Dean."

"Maybe, maybe not. Guess now we'll never know, huh?" He looked around the room, his gaze finally landing on the bed they occasionally shared. "If everything goes the way it should, you'll be a free woman soon." She'd be able to finish her divorce and he'd be an unattached drifter again. All would be right in the world.

The comment was made so casually that at first, Jane was sure she had misunderstood him. When it sunk in, she pursed her lips. "Ready to be rid of me?" Of course he was, he had never made any bones about who he was, or the fact that if it wouldn't have been for her, some of his nights wouldn't have been so lonely. What a great guy.

"Hell yeah," He grinned down at her, his eyes crinkling in amusement. "I told you once, sweetheart, you ruined me. Not to mention, all those women you've been denying my many, many charms."

"Oh those poor girls… how guilty I'm not feeling." Jane shoved him backwards, smirking when he was caught off-guard and landed on the bed. "You know you'll miss me." She informed him as she moved to sit on his thighs, her hands resting on his abdomen.

"Mmm, maybe a little bit, baby." He folded his hands under his head. "One last round?"

"No." She bent down to brush her lips against his. "Not until you admit you'll miss me."

"I'll miss this for sure." He raised his hips, letting out a quiet chuckle when she sounded exasperated. "Jane, as messed up as it's been at times, you are the… longest relationship I've ever been in. It'll be good for you to get back to your life, Jane. This isn't for you, it never was."

"That your way of letting me down easy?"

"Letting us both down easy. I think we both know this wouldn't work out in the long run. I mean, I'm a high school dropout who made the career choice of hunting the nasties with a year left to live. You can do better."

"A year left to live?"

He gave her a dark look, she had totally missed or ignored the do better's implied 'me'. "How do you think that deal went down Jane? I get him back without giving up anything?"

"A year, Dean?" She moved to get off of him only to wind up laying out on him, chest to chest. "Let me go, I can't believe you… Did you even stop to think about Sam?"

"I did it for him." He couldn't let Sammy die, be dead, not while there was a breath left in his body and he had seen no other way. He knew she wouldn't understand so he didn't see any point in explaining his motives.

"No, you did it because you can't-" He shook her so hard her teeth rattled and she paused. "You can't let him go because you're afraid."

"Maybe." His eyes were dark. "But it's none of your business sweetheart, now is it?"

"You're a jerk Dean, you know that? A real jerk."

He rolled suddenly, so she was the one lying on the bed, and he was on top of her. A knee between her thighs parted them and he shifted his weight so he wasn't crushing her. "Don't come tonight, Jane. Just stay here and let us handle it."

So that's what this had been about, on top of her provocation with Sam. He had apparently sold his soul and had one year left, but he was concerned about her going with them to that damn devil's gate. "I'm coming, Dean. You might as well resign yourself to that."

"I don't know what's going to happen… it's going to be bad, sweetheart. Real bad."

"When isn't it?"

He laughed humorlessly, studying her face intently. "Why haven't you gone crazy yet?"

"Pardon me?"

"Most people would have lost it by now, but not you. Why is that?"

She considered the question, agreeing he was right. "Well… because, I don't know really. I mean, I freak out, and sometimes I think I may be crazy, definitely scared half the time, but… it doesn't seem all that weird to me. You gotta remember, I've been somewhat weird myself for my entire life."

He snorted but nodded. "I can believe it."

"Dean…." She wanted to ask him why he had made the deal, but she knew why. No matter how stupid it seemed, dealing with demons, she knew why. "I'm not leaving after this is over, just so you know."

"Why not?"

"Because… I think I might… well, I like it here."

"You like me, you mean."

"Not really. I hardly ever see you and when I do, you boss me around and try to get in my pants."

"Guilty on both accounts." He sat up and simply stared down at her. "You know, this year isn't going to be easy. Not that it was easy before. It's going to be… messed up, Jane."

"The way I figure it, either I divorce you or just wait for the year to come and go and be a widow. I'm lazy about paperwork so…" She smiled, to let him know she was teasing, mostly. "Unless of course, you want me to just get it done and over with so you can go back to your life of hedonism."

He actually considered that. He had one year left, providing they even made it through tonight. "Let's get through tonight Jane, and then we'll sit down and figure this thing… us… out."

"Sure, get through tonight."

"It'll be easy."