The dark figure loomed before her through the darkness, his face concealed in the shadows. She wasn't sure if she was afraid of him. He'd helped her before, but that didn't mean he wasn't dangerous.

The girl backed away as he slowly approached. Her ears rang with the sound of an engine, hot and screeching, metal on metal. He was so close now, she could almost touch him. She reached a hand out, grabbing the man's hood and ripping it away. Their eyes locked, but the girl only saw a black, harrowing darkness staring back at her.

Allison Venator woke with a silent gasp. As the motel room materialised around her, she released a relieved breath. No mysterious man. No demon. Just the morning sun creeping through the drab curtains. She rolled her eyes at herself. Nightmares were for children. She didn't need to be afraid of looming figures in the night or the monster under her bed. Allison Venator knew exactly how to deal with them.

A knock at the door brought her out of bed and she ran a hand through her hair, feeling the remanence of sweat on her forehead. She needed a shower. "One second," she called as the knocking persisted. Ali pulled on a pair of jeans and opened the door, revealing an overly chipper looking Dean.

"You look happy," she commented in an almost disapproving way. By her record, none of them had any reason to be happy, least of all Dean thanks to his impending death.

"What can I say, it's Friday," Dean replied with a sarcastic smile. Ali rolled her eyes.

"You've still got hellhounds nipping at your heels, right?" she asked. Dean's smile faltered for a second.

"And you're making me late for breakfast," he replied. "Meet us in the lobby in five." With that, Dean turned away and stalked down the corridor. Ali watched him go for a second before returning to her room, quickly running a brush through her hair and throwing on a t-shirt.

Dean was already out the door when Ali caught up with the Winchesters in the lobby. Sam smiled at her as she approached, adjusting the mop of hair on his head with his fingers. The pair trailed behind Dean as they wandered across the street to the nearest diner.

"We need a plan," Ali said quietly, not wanting the elder Winchester to tune in to their conversation. Sam raised a brow, waiting for her to elaborate. "For Dean." Sam signed.

"I'm working on it," he replied, his hand catching the diner door as Dean let it shut behind him. Ali narrowed her eyes at him, but Dean had already beckoned them over to a table before she had the chance to question him about it.

The following day brought a similar routine. The cases seemed to have dried up, and it was all Ali could do not to rip her hair out. Not only that, but she had received several missed calls from an unknown number, with no reply when she had tried to return them. Ali couldn't help but feel that they were from the hooded man that had been following her. The truth was that she needed a case. She needed to be occupied. A lack of hunting meant a lot of thinking. Ali didn't like thinking. Not when her mind was swimming with visions of Dean being ripped apart by hell hounds. Not when her dreams were filled with black demon eyes staring back at her. She needed something to keep her busy.

She wandered aimlessly back to her room after breakfast, slumping on the uncomfortable bed, her toes tapping restlessly on the floor. The room was silent, but Allison felt anything but peaceful. Even so, the exhaustion of the constant anxiety she felt pulled at her eyelids, and soon she had drifted into the harsh world of sleep.

The feeling of being shaken woke her. Her eyes snapped open and she gasped, but there was no one in front of her. Must have been another nightmare. Sighing, she sat up and made her way to the bathroom, feeling the need to splash some water on her face. As she entered, Ali was surprised to see that the tap was already turned on, the cool water swirling around the sink in a steady rhythm. She didn't remember leaving it on.

She turned it off after washing her face, a feeling of uneasiness coming over her. Suddenly there was a crash from the other side of the door, and she exited the bathroom to find one of the pictures had fallen off the wall. Ali's uneasiness turned to dread. She stared at the broken glass scattered across the floor, the shards glinting in the dim motel room light. An unexpected cold feeling washed over her, her skin icy and her breath condensing in the air. The tension in the air swelled, the temperature dropping another ten degrees.

Cold spots.

The sound of the door opening made her gasp, and she swung round, her eyes meeting a confused looking Dean.

"Ali, I'm going for a drive, wanna come?" he asked, but the blonde girl was already heading for the door.

"Get out," she said firmly, grabbing her bag on the way to the door.

"Ali, what's…?" Dean started as Ali's hands met his chest and shoved him out of the room. He stumbled back, an annoyed frown forming on his face. Ali's eyes darted back to the door and she quickly slammed it behind her, her chest heaving.

"Ali, what the hell!" the elder Winchester barked.

"Cold spots," Ali replied. Dean's expression softened into one of concern. "There's a ghost in there."

"A ghost?" he clarified. Ali nodded. Sam emerged from around the corner, a similar expression of concern and confusion on his face.

"What's going on?" he asked as he approached.

"Ali thinks there's a ghost in her room," Dean replied, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his makeshift EMF detector.

"There is," Ali insisted as Dean tentatively pushed open the door to her room. "Dean, I'm not lying."

"I don't think you are, kiddo," Dean replied, shooting her a tight smile. "I'm just gonna check it out, alright? Stay out here with Sam."

Ali nodded, her eyes fixed on Dean as he entered the room, slowly shutting the door behind him.

"You alright?" Sam asked as he raised a brow at her. Ali looked up at him before following his line of sight. He was watching her hands. They were balled up into tight fists, her knuckles white. She released them quickly, realising she must have seemed overly anxious. Sam held his gaze, his brown furrowed.

"I'm fine," she insisted. The pair waited in silence, the minutes feeling like hours. Finally, Dean emerged from the room, shutting the door behind him with a sigh. His eyes found Sam's for a second before falling back on Ali.

"It's clear," he replied. "Couldn't find anything." Ali frowned.

"What?"

"No EMF, no nothing," Dean clarified, shoving the meter back into the pocket of his jacket. "Hell, I even checked for ectoplasm."

"That doesn't make any sense," Ali replied. She could feel the anxiety rising inside herself again. She didn't want Dean to think she'd made it up. She knew there had to be an explanation for what had happened in her room. There must be a ghost. "There is something in there," she repeated.

"I don't know what to tell you, kiddo," Dean sighed, holding out the EMF detector to her. "Feel free to check it out yourself." Ali glared up at the elder Winchester before snatching the detector from his hand and pushing past him into the room. The brothers exchanged sceptical looks that were laced with concern as they waited for her in the corridor.

Ali returned a few moments later, her eyes on the ground as she pulled the door shut behind her.

"Anything?" Dean asked. The teen glanced up at him briefly before shoving the EMF detector against his chest.

"Must be broken," she mumbled sullenly. Dean rolled his eyes. Before he could reel off a list of sarcastic remarks he bit his tongue, noticing the anxious way Ali was picking her fingernails. She was scared. He sighed.

"Look," Dean started. "Why don't we get out of here for a while, huh?" Ali crossed her arms, leaning back against the wall in dismay. "Sam can stay here, check the place out?" Sam nodded in agreement. Ali didn't see a way she was going to be able to get out of it, and if she was honest, she didn't want to spend a minute longer alone in her room.

"Fine," she mumbled, kicking away from the wall and wondering out to the parking lot.

Dean followed her out and soon they were on the road, driving to nowhere in particular. Ali rolled the window down, but the hot breeze tickling her face did little to calm her nerves. The pair were silent as the drove, but what was usually a comfortable silence between the two had a sharp edge to it. Dean was the first to find it too much to bear.

"So uh, Sam told me he's teaching you math," he offered, trying to think of something they would talk about that didn't involve ghosts or his impending death-by-hellhounds. He noticed the girl next to him squirm in her seat, a flush of red spreading over her cheeks. "I think it's cool." Ali seemed to relax a little, and she turned her head towards him, arching a brow.

"Really?" she asked, surprise clear in her voice.

"Sure," he replied. "I mean, education is important right? And Sam knows his stuff." Ali nodded, a little taken aback. The drive continued, and Dean found the silence slightly more bearable. However, there was still something bothering him about the girl next to him. She was scared earlier. Of a ghost. That wasn't like her at all. Together they'd fought off monsters far more terrifying and dangerous than a simple ghost. Something was off. Something was making her afraid, and he didn't like it.

He slowly pulled the car to a stop, wanting to give his full attention to the blonde girl before him.

"Why are we stopping," Ali asked, Dean turned to her, his brow furrowing with concern. He could practically feel the anxiety radiating off her.

"I need to talk to you."

"About what?" she asked.

"You," Dean replied. Ali scoffed.

"What about me?" Dean signed.

"Why are you so afraid?" he asked. Ali shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. She'd tried to hide her feelings, but it seemed they gotten the best of her. Her palms were sweating, and she was pretty sure that if she was alone she would've broken down into a crumpled mess on the floor. His gaze softened. Ali debated denying it, but she knew Dean would see right through her. She wasn't sure if she cared if he did. "Tell me," he pleaded. His voice was almost a whisper. Ali knew exactly what he was asking. Tell me so I can help.

"It's not just the ghost," she admitted finally. She wondered whether to tell him about the man in the black hood. The man who had plagued her nightmares since he'd saved her at the Roadhouse. The man who had fled the school after Emily died. The man who she wasn't sure was her guardian angel or a demon from hell. She wondered if Sam had already told Dean about him. She didn't think so, and she wasn't ready for him to know.

"I'm worried about Ruby," Ali said, and it wasn't a complete lie. "I don't trust her." Dean sighed.

"Yeah, you and be both, kid," he replied.

"I think Sam trusts her," she continued. "At least a little." Dean nodded in agreement, and Ali hoped it would occupy his mind enough to not asked any other questions about what might be bothering her. For a while, at least.

"Speaking of Ruby," Dean started, pulling something out of the glove compartment. "I want you to hold onto this for a while." Ali frowned as he handed the piece of cloth out to her. She took it from him, gently unfolding it to reveal the beautiful weapon hidden safely within.

"I can't," she said quickly, pushing the Colt back into Dean's hands.

"This isn't a negotiation," he responded, refusing to take it back from her. "Look, Bobby fixed it, it's got bullets that actually work, and I'd feel better if you had it." Ali sighed, resting the weapon in her lap as she stared town at it.

"You know I already have a gun," she replied, referring to the one Bobby gave her.

"Yeah, well, this one kills demons," Dean responded. Ali frowned. She'd guessed Dean's generous gift likely had an ulterior motive. She was starting to sense what it was.

"I told you, I'm not interested in going after the demon that killed Tyler," she said in a low voice. Dean sighed. "I told you that already."

"Yeah, I know what you told me," he puffed, sitting back in his seat. "And its bullshit." Ali glared at him.

"I can't think about Tyler at the moment," she insisted again. "It's not the priority." Dean shook his head, rolling his eyes at the teen before him.

"How can you not think about it," he questioned. "You're lying."

"I said it's not my priority," she repeated, her frustration growing. Dean folded his arms over his chest, his eyes staring out the front window. He could feel her aggravated stare burning a hole in the side of his head.

"Liar," he replied. Ali exploded.

"Fine!" she barked. "Want me to say how I feel about my dead brother? Want me to tell you how every second of every day I feel this crushing pain and consuming anger at what happened to him?" She paused, her breathing heavy as tears started to form in her eyes. "Want me to talk about how I still hear the sound of him screaming as the demon ripped him apart?"

"Ali…" Dean started.

"What do you want?!" she screamed at him. Tears streamed down her face. Dean couldn't remember the last time he saw her cry. Guilt twisted in his stomach.

"Ali I know," he said softly. "I know how you feel." Dean thought of the pain of losing his mother, and the utter despair he felt after his father died to save him. He remembered the feeling of Sam dying in his arms. "I also know that the only thing that brings me any kind of peace is knowing I put a bullet in that son of a bitch. If I could help you find the same kinda peace, that's worth it for me." Ali wiped her cheeks. She knew Dean only wanted to help her. Silence filled the car, and Dean wondered if he'd pushed too far this time. Finally, Ali spoke.

"Tyler's dead, you're not," she said. "We've still got a chance to save you." Dean spotted a new look of determination in her eyes he hadn't seen in a while. A new motivation. "If Sam has to lose you… if I have to lose you…" she shook her head, barely wanting to think about it. "I don't think we'd survive it." Dean wiped a hand across his face, as if to wipe off the heaviness he felt. It didn't work.

"Okay," he said. "But I still want you to hold onto the Colt for now." Ali sighed, but she nodded her head anyway.

"For now," she repeated.

Allison Venator lay still in the motel bed, her eyes wide open, the Colt clutched anxiously in her hands. It had just gone midnight, and she hadn't been able to get a wink of sleep. Then the noises had started. The bathroom door had creaked open, the soft sound of footsteps making their way towards her. She had snapped the light on in a flash, but no one was there. Then the window had burst open, the wind knocking an old ornament off the windowsill and smashing on the ground.

Now she lay in the darkness, her anxiety building. She couldn't wake the Winchesters. She'd already been humiliated enough the previous day when she'd been screaming about a ghost in her room, only to discover no trace of one in the room. To make matter worse, when she and Dean had returned from their drive, Sam had informed them that there was no history of any violent or suspicious deaths at the motel. To make matters even worse, she had received yet another 3 missed calls from the unknown number, which she was now sure was from her likely demon stalker. Ali was sure he'd burst in at any moment and lop her head off.

She could feel the hairs on her arms pricking up, a coldness sweeping across the room. She let out a breath of terror, clinging harder to the Colt. She'd now had enough. She swiftly exited her room and made her way down the corridor to Sam and Dean's room.

The door creaked as Ali pushed it open, her palms sweating as the anxiety coursed through her veins. She stood for a moment as she peered into the room. She felt so pathetic. Like a scared little girl. But she couldn't stay in that room much longer. Not by herself.

The blonde girl stepped into the motel room, her feet moving slowly across the carpet tiles. She stared at the sleeping Sam Winchester sprawled out across most of the bed, psyching herself up to wake him.

"Sam," she whispered, nudging his shoulder with her finger. "Sam."

"What?" he groaned, opening one eye and frowning at the shadow of the girl before him.

"I'm scared," she admitted, feeling utterly stupid saying it to him. She held his gaze with pleading eyes. Sam sighed, rolling over and pulling down the cover to make room for her.

Ali shuffled into the bed, muttering a quick "thanks" under her breath.

"Go to sleep," Sam mumbled into his pillow, and Ali was pretty sure he'd already dozed off. She placed the Colt on the table beside the bed and pulled the covers over herself. The bed was warm, and she felt instantly safer with Sam sleeping next to her.

Ali woke the next morning to the familiar creak of the door swinging open, the delicious scent of caffeine filling the room.

"I have coffee," Sam said as he walked into the room, holding out a tray of two espressos and a latte. Dean groaned loudly, turning over in bed and holding a pillow over his head to block out the noise. Ali jumped out of bed, and took the coffee from Sam gratefully, finishing it in three gulps.

Dean pulled himself out of bed and drank his coffee in a similar way, grumbling to Sam about him not getting any food and leaving swiftly in search of a vending machine.

"So, what happened last night," Sam asked as the door clicked shut.

"Sorry," Ali apologised, feeling awkward and pathetic. Sam released a breath as he smiled.

"Don't be sorry for being scared," he replied. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"I'll be fine," she assured him. There was a pause, and Sam wondered whether to question her more on it. He wanted to make sure she was okay. He wanted to make sure nothing else was going on. She spoke again before he had the chance.

"Mind if I use your bathroom?" Ali asked. Sam felt a small amount of tension release from the room.

"Sure," he replied. She grabbed her things and entered the bathroom, feeling happy to finally be able to shower without worrying a ghost was after her. She had been too scared to use her own.

"You gonna be long?" Ali heard Sam call through the door. She stretched her arms up above her head and rolled her shoulders. They were stiff from how tense she'd been the last few days. Sleeping in the same bed as Sam hadn't done her much good either. The guy was twice her size and took up more than half the mattress.

"Taking a shower," she called ack, pulling the tie out of her hair and letting her blonde locks fall down her back.

"Shower's broken," Sam replied. Ali huffed.

"Guess it'll have to be a bath," she said boredly, the idea not appealing to her in the slightest. She hated washing her hair in the bath. She never felt like it was properly clean afterwards.

Making sure she had a towel and some spare clothes, Ali leaned over the tub and turned on the taps, stepping back as she watched the bath fill with water. She pulled her jumper over her head and kicked off her shoes before turning around in front of the mirror. She could see the scar poking out from behind her tank top. It covered the centre of her upper back, the burn obvious and ugly. It wasn't like she wasn't used to by now. It'd been there for months and it didn't hurt her anymore. Not in a physical sense anyway.

When the mirror started to become steamy around the edges, Ali turned back to the tub and dipped her hands in to test the temperature of the water. She frowned. It wasn't as hot as she'd expected. In fact, it was freezing. She tested it again, wondering if she was just imagining it. Still icy cold.

"Great," Ali muttered to herself, her mind considering the possibility that Dean had used up all the hot water the night before. Sighing, she leaned over the tub again, her hands meeting the taps as she turned them off.

That was when she felt the shove of two hands on her shoulders and before she knew what was happening, she had lost her balance and was splashing in the freezing water.

Ali was startled at first, shock more that anything racing through her as she moved onto her back, thrashing to get out of the tub. She felt the hands again. This time they were above her, pushing down on her shoulders. She gasped as she slipped below the surface of the water, her head and shoulders submerged.

Ali tried to shout for help, but the sound was muted by the water that filled her mouth. She pushed at the thing that held her, but there was nothing there to push. Her eyes were wide, stinging in the freezing water. There wasn't anything above her but the crushing weight of something pushing her down. Ali writhed against it, her legs kicking at the air as she fought to get her head above the surface. She could hear her heart beating in her ears as she suppressed the urge to take a breath. She wasn't going to die by drowning in a shitty motel bathroom. She refused.

But whatever it was that held her down didn't let up. Ali's head was splitting. She needed to breathe. She needed to fight. Ali gathered the last of her strength and pushed up out of the water. The force on her shoulders vanished as she stumbled out of the tub, spluttering and tripping over herself as she raced to get out of the bathroom.

She backed away quickly, her hand finding the handle as she threw open the door and practically fell out into the motel room.

"Woah!" Sam warned when she ran into him, almost knocking him over. "Ali, what – you're soaking wet!" Ali stared into the bathroom as Sam stared at her. Fear coursed through her veins as she tried to calm her breath. Her teeth were chattering.

"There's something in there," she said shakily through her rapid breaths. Sam frowned, his attention focused more on how cold the girl before him felt rather than what she was saying. Her icy fingers clung to his clothes as if her life depended on it.

"You're freezing," he muttered, his brows furrowing as he held her shoulders steady. She looked as if she might pass out.

"There's something in there," she repeated. "It pushed me and held me under." Ali's words were detached, her sentence segmented by rasping breaths.

Sam's attention was swiftly snapped away as the motel door swung open, a confused looking Dean halting in his tracks when his eyes locked on the pair.

"Okay," Dean, started, the door swinging shut behind him. "What the hell did I just walk into?" It was a fair question considering the compromising position he'd discovered his brother in with the teen.

"There's something in there!" Ali said forcefully, a shaking arm pointed out at the bathroom. Sam sat her down on the bed quickly.

"Something attacked her, Dean," Sam said defensively as Dean raised a brow at his younger brother.

"It tried to drown me!" Ali shouted, the cold water dripping off her body and soaking the bed.

"Okay!" Dean interjected, throwing the snacks he'd just collected from the vending machine in reception and holding a hand up to silence them. "Sam, check for EMF," he commanded. "Ali, get a towel, you're getting water all over the floor." Ali glared back at him but hastily grabbed another towel to dry herself off. She was freezing.

Sam left to grab the EMF reader from the trunk of the car whilst Dean considered the girl before him carefully. She was shaking, but not just from the cold. She was terrified, and there was something slightly unhinged about her. He didn't want to upset her, but he had to know. A feeling was niggling at the core of his mind – a feeling he knew would be too dangerous to ignore.

"Ali," Dean started, his voice concerned. "Are you feeling okay?" Ali frowned back at him as she squeezed her hair into the towel.

"I've been better," she scoffed back, trying to control her breathing. She could tell that wasn't the answer Dean was looking for. "I'm fine, Dean."

"Are you sure?" he persisted.

"Well other than just being almost drowned in the bath," she shot back, shaking her head. "Why don't you believe me?"

"I believe you, kiddo," he replied. "I just…" Dean looked up at her, he could see the reflection of her back in the mirror she was standing in front of. He could see the scar that was left from when he'd burned her. He felt a sharp pain deep within himself.

"What?" Ali questioned him. "What is it then?" He swallowed thickly, knowing he needed to choose his next words carefully.

"I'm worried," he admitted. "You're acting differently, and the last time that happened…" Ali stated back at him, en expression of hurt sweeping across her face.

"If you say Electra, I swear to god…" Ali hissed at him.

"Okay," Dean accepted. "Okay, I'm sorry." They shared a mutual look of resignation, both still not fully healed from their past trauma.

Sam entered the room shortly after, holding the EMF reader that he'd already turned on. Dean grabbed it from his hands and entered the bathroom, huffing in frustration when he found nothing.

"What the hell is going on in this place," he mumbled, bashing his hand against the EMF reader to see if it made a difference. He exited the bathroom, and as he did, the reader started beeping. Ali tensed at the noise, her suspicions confirmed. Dean walked further in the room, three pairs of eyes glued to the reader as it continued to beep. He turned around, trying the find the source of the EMF.

"Ali, don't move," Dean said slowly as he approached her, the reader going crazy as it beeped even faster.

"It's coming from you," Sam said, Ali's eyes widening in fear. Maybe Dean was right. Maybe she had been possessed again.

"What the hell…" she started, panic rising inside her.

"Don't move!" Dean barked as he got closer. Ali froze as Dean moved towards her, gently pushing her out of the way as he moved passed her. She stared as the reader beeped faster and faster as Dean approached the table that was behind her, releasing a breath as she followed Dean's line of sight directly to her phone.

Dean picked the phone up tentatively and dropped it onto the bed, holding the EMF reader next to it. The beeping was incessant.

"My phone is haunted?" Ali asked incredulously. "Seriously?"

"Sam is this even possible?" Dean asked his brother, stepping away from the bed.

"Maybe," Sam replied. "Have you been getting any weird calls or anything?" Ali thought back to the many missed calls she'd been unable to return. Calls she thought were from the man who'd been following her. She was almost relieved at the prospect of it being a ghost instead who had been ringing her.

"Yeah, I have," she answered, shaking her head. "I thought…"

"I've read texts before about people contacting the dead through a phone before," Sam said. "Thomas Edison was thought to have made a spirit phone he could use to contact the dead, but I've never seen it done before."

"Is that even possible?" Ali asked as Sam grabbed a book from his bag and began flicking through it.

"It's creepy," Dean interjected. "So what do we do? Salt and burn?"

"That's what it says here," Sam replied, looking up from the book. Ali crossed her arms, looking a little dejected.

"Told you there was a ghost," she mumbled. Dean let out a snort as he grabbed the phone from the bed and threw his jacket over the shoulder.

"I'll get you a new phone," he said, holding out his hand as a request for forgiveness. Ali sighed, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"Deal," she replied.

Dean and Sam left swiftly with the phone, armed with salt and a flask of holy oil for good measure, leaving Ali to dry off and get dressed. Dean wanted to leave as soon as they returned.

Within half an hour of driving, Dean decided they were far enough out of town not to draw attention to themselves, and soon they had a pit dug, a fire made, and they both watched as the phone melted away.

"You wanna tell me what's going on with you and Ali?" Dean said suddenly as the brother's stared into the flames.

"What are you talking about?" Sam replied defensively.

"She slept in your bed last night," Dean pointed out. Sam rolled his eyes.

"She's seventeen, Dean," the younger Winchester replied with an exasperated sigh. "She's a kid."

"She won't always be," Dean replied.

"Dean, where are you going with this?" Sam asked, growing frustrated. "She was scared, she didn't wanna be alone. That's it."

"Okay," Dean said, throwing his hands up in defence. "And you're right, she's just a kid," he continued. "And I get it. You were just tryna protect her." Sam nodded. "Kinda like a little sister, right?" Dean looked up, locking eyes with Sam. The younger Winchester felt uncomfortable under the piercing gaze, but Dean didn't break it.

"Right," Sam agreed. Dean sighed, clapping his hand on his brother's back.

"Right, let's get outta here," he said, turning towards the impala. "I'm starving."

It was cold that night in the impala. Ali huddled up on the back bench as Dean slept in the driver's seat. She could hear Sam flicking through the pages of a book. She sat up, resting her head on the back of the seat.

"Where were you the other night?" Ali asked suddenly. The night she'd slept in Sam's bed she'd woken at 4am to find the other side empty. The Colt has also disappeared. It had been playing on her mind all day, but she wasn't sure she wanted to hear the answer.

"What are you talking about?" Sam said. Ali sighed, figuring he would play dumb for a while. She knew she'd have to press him harder for the truth.

"I heard you leave the room," she replied. "You were gone for hours." Sam shuffled uncomfortably under Ali's gaze. His right hand flipped through the textbook in front of him whilst the other hand tapped nervously on the dashboard.

"Couldn't sleep," he puffed out. Ali wondered whether to leave it. Sam clearly didn't want to tell her what he was up to, but she had a bad feeling. A feeling like Sam could be in danger. She needed to find out.

"Don't lie to me, Sam," she said quietly. Sadly. Sam looked up from the pages of the book. Ali could see the remorse in his eyes, the pain behind his expression of regret. She recalled how she'd lied to Dean the other day about why she was afraid. They all had seemed to have far too many secrets. "Where did you go?" Sam sighed.

"I went to make a deal," he replied quietly. Ali's eyes widened. She glanced across to Dean who was still sleeping. "Don't worry, they said no." Sam closed the book, and Ali could see he was clearly frustrated he hadn't been able to sell his soul in exchange for Dean's.

"How could you do that?" she asked, a feeling of betrayal settling uncomfortably within her. "After everything, how could you do that?"

"What am I supposed to do, just sit here and do nothing?" Sam asked, his voice quiet and sad.

"You're not supposed to go and do something so stupid," Ali replied, running her fingers through her hair, her only comfort the fact that the demon's wouldn't make a deal with Sam.

"Then tell me something…" Sam said. His eyes lifted to meet Ali's. She stared back at him, awaiting his question. "If there was something you could do," he paused. "If you could make a deal with the devil to see Tyler again, would you do it?" Ali's breath caught in her throat. "Cause I don't think you hesitate for a second." Ali swallowed his words.

Guilt swelled inside. She hadn't attempted to make a deal to save Tyler. She hadn't even considered it a possibility until Dean had made his own deal a few months ago. She knew she could've done more to help Tyler. She should have done more for him.

Ali didn't reply to Sam's question out loud. Instead, she slumped back onto the back bench, pulling her knees up to her chest as she closed her eyes. Things were getting far too complicated. All the secrets. All the demons. All the deals. She wanted it all to end.

Ali continued to think about Sam's question as she drifted off to an unpeaceful sleep. Sam was right. She would do anything to be able to see Tyler again. She would give anything. Even if it meant rotting in hell forever. And if the opportunity presented itself, she wouldn't hesitate for a second to take it.

AN: Hello everyone! So it's been a minute...

Sorry for being away for so long, its been a busy time - I completed my undergrad degree and now I'm half way through med school. It's stressful and LOADS of work but I love it.

In regards to this story, I think about it all the time. I have so many plans for Ali and the Winchesters, and I hope I'll be able to write them all down and share them with you in the future. I don't know if any of you will still be reading this, but I wanted to let you know that I love you and I appreciate you all so much! I started writing fanfiction during a time when my mental health wasn't 100% and it was amazing to be able to escape to my laptop and just forget about everything else for a while, so thanks to those who started reading this story! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope someday I'll post another one!

Until then, much love as always. Let me know what you thought :)