Dean smiled at her eyes fluttering shut at the feeling of his forehead on hers. It was like nothing had changed. He still made her excited, just like the days where her family saw him as dangerous, and as a threat. Her father had even made it clear to him, on one occasion that he was too dangerous to be near his daughter, and that he demanded he stay away.

But something always drew them back to each other. He found her fascinating. She calmed him, when he was irate. In times that he got into fights around her, she was able to calm him by simply holding his hand, or touching his face.

As she tilted her face to rub her nose against his, his eyes fluttered shut, as well, and his heart jumped into his throat, just in time for her to not only make a joke about their kiss earlier in the day, but to kiss him first. His heart sped up more at how forward she was being, his hand coming up to brush her hair back and cup her cheek as he kissed her back, still swaying a bit to the music.

This was not how he had thought his night would go, but he was thankful she showed up. From the happy numbness he felt in this moment, he had definitely missed her being this close. He deepened the kiss, sighing in contentment, and let the kiss linger until the song ended, and the bar went silent briefly.

As another song came onto the jukebox, a bit faster this time, he broke the kiss with a smile, keeping his forehead against hers, “That was unexpected…”

He laughed, his eyes still closed, and then allowed them to slowly open, watching hers.

“I can feel your heart in your neck.”, he muttered with a small laugh, placing a single small kiss on her lips, “And now I’m not sure I want to go find my brother just yet…”

Esme normally wasn’t so forward when it came to moments such as these, but something about Dean brought it out in her. Maybe it was because he felt things so strongly and she could easily pick up on them being an empath. Maybe it was because she had shoved down her feelings for him all that time ago and they were now pouring out of her. Whatever it was, she wasn’t complaining about it. She smiled behind their kiss when she felt his heartbeat pick up and when he brushed back her hair to cup her cheek as he kissed her back. At that moment, she felt like they were the only two in the bar dancing to the music.

She had to admit, she never thought she would end up here. She had thought would have run into another dead end and left town. But she was happy and thankful that it hadn’t ended up that way. She was perfectly content, wrapped in his arms and locked in a kiss. Something else she never thought would happen today. God, how she missed being so close to another, especially him. Her heartbeat picked up as he deepened the kiss. She unlocked her fingers from behind his neck, letting her left hand slide down to rest on his arm and her right slid down to rest on his chest.

A sigh of contentment escaped her as well, making her feel slightly weak in the knees. As the kiss lingered, she could feel herself becoming light-headed as she lost herself within it. She barely noticed when the song ended and things went silent before another song played. However, when he broke the kiss, she came back to earth. Her eyes remained closed, and a smile was upon her lips. Her smile grew at his words, and she had to laugh along with him. “Does that mean I surprised you?” Her eyes slowly opened to meet his gaze, and another laugh escaped her.

When he kissed her, she returned it with a smile. “Of course you can. After a kiss like that, it would be hard to keep it slow.” Which was true. She felt as if her heart were going to beat right out of her chest. Esme closed her eyes briefly at his statement. She felt the same way. She was enjoying herself too much here to even want to think of joining up with the other three. She knew it sounded selfish, but she wanted more of this. “I know what you mean…... It’s hard to pull yourself away from a moment that feels so…….. Normal. When you finally have a moment that feels normal, you just want to hang onto it and not let go.” She sighed heavily as she scanned his eyes to see if that was how he felt, as well.

Dean laughed a bit, nodding his head and shrugging his shoulders at her question of surprise, “I would say so. I haven’t um…had someone kiss me like that in a long time, on their own.”

He thought over their options, knowing that he should be with Sam, at a moment like this. But he also knew that when Castiel wanted to hide from angels, he was surprisingly good at it. With Esme, Dean was an open target for the angels, himself, because while he was hidden from them, she wasn’t. With Sam’s branding on his ribs, and Castiel warding the house, the place would be like a fortress.

Sam also knew that they were going to be out, and how badly Dean needed a break. Hell, they both needed a break, he and his brother. The last year and a half had been non-stop angel crap, and now Lucifer. They would be insane if they weren’t tired and ready to relax.

As he thought over everything, he stared blankly at the bar behind her head, spacing out a bit. But then his eye twitched and he met her eyes again with a warm smile, “Sam’s safe with Cas, right now. I think we can take our time…”

He brought his hand back up to brush her cheek, running his fingers through her hair as he leaned in for another long kiss, slowly leading her backward to rest her back against the nearby wall, behind the billiards tables. As soon as her back made contact, he lowered a hand to press her hips against the wall, nibbling at her lip. They could worry about the end of the world later. Right now, it was time to catch up…

Esme looked up at him as he nodded his head with a shrug to her question. A grin came to her lips, followed by a giggle. “Ah, then I accomplished something today.” She fell silent as he fell into thought. She knew he was going through the options they had, and she knew he was worried about Sam and her. She didn’t know Sam except for Dean had told her about it, but she had to admit she was worried about him too. Though as she thought about him being in a place with heavy warding and an angel, her worry faded a little. The place would be hard for anything to get into, like a fortress.

Not to mention she could see how much Dean needed to get away from everything that had been going on. She could clearly see it written on his face. Since they had been at the bar, she could see the good it was doing. He was smiling, laughing, and dancing. His tense shoulders had even relaxed. All this was happening, and he only had two triple shots. It was a tad surprising. She focused back on him as he stared blankly past her at the bar. She almost said something when his eye twitched, and he smiled as he looked at her. She gave a warm smile in return to his words and his touch. “If you……” his kiss cut her off.

She returned his kiss with her own as he led her backwards to a wall, then pressed her hips against it. As he nibbled her lip, she smiled as she slid her right hand up his chest and neck to rest on his cheek, stroking it with her thumb. Esme then kissed him again, deepening it after a moment.

The sun peeked into the window, assaulting Dean's face with its brightness. He squinted, trying to stay asleep, despite his retinas burning behind his eyelids. He was so comfortable, and his head was already pounding.

Dean opened his eyes with some effort, blinking away the sleep from them as he woke up. He raised a hand to his forehead, realizing one arm was pinned down and that he had gone back for a few extra drinks between his overexcited ‘relaxation time’ with Esme pretty much all over the bar, judging by the slightly drunk feeling he still suffered.

He was determined, throughout the night, and had been vocal about not going back to Sam, at that time. He needed a break, from the angels, the demons, his brother, and everything that came with being a Winchester. It was a break that he didn’t have time to take, but he had to, or he would go insane.

He smirked, remembering that the bartender cut him off out of pure annoyance, and he had come to get this room, with Esme, who he assumed…

Glancing down at his chest, he smirked seeing her blonde hair and realizing she was the weight against his right arm. Despite the massive hangover, he would likely be nursing all day, he felt well-rested for the first time in a long time. Really, for the first time since he had come back from Hell. He snuggled her closer to his bare chest and sighed, closing his eyes and just existing for a moment.

But as if his mind had it out for him, the situations surrounding him popped into his head, causing his eyes to pop open. He brought the hand that had been resting on Esme’s shoulder up to stroke her hair, not really wanting to wake her up, but knowing they needed to check in on Sam.

Esme slept soundly next to Dean. With the way she had her arm draped over him, it blocked most of the sun from hitting her face. For the first time in months, her dreams were peaceful and not plagued with nightmares and gruesome images. Her dreams were partially filled with past memories of her and Dean and pieces of what happened last night. Like how she tried to quiet him down when he became vocal about needing a break from angels, demons, his brother, and everything else Winchester related. When Dean snuggled her close, she woke just a little, but not enough to stir.

The closeness brought a smile to her lips and caused her to drift back off. At his gentle attempt to wake her up, she breathed in deeply and gave a tired groan in protest. “Ten more minutes…. Please.’ she said tiredly. She then snuggled up closer to him, her nose brushing along his jawline as she tilted her head up. She could feel a slight throb in her head from the one too many drinks she had last night. She vaguely remembered going back to get the extra drinks, but could remember getting into the room and the moments after.

The night had turned out to be way more than she had expected it to be when they first arrived at the bar. And now, she didn’t want to get out of the bed, she was far too comfortable laying next to him in his arms to move. She knew they needed to check in with Sam, but she just wanted to enjoy a few more moments of this….. A few more minutes of feeling normal.

Dean smirked, deciding to close his eyes for a few more minutes and enjoy his situation. He snuggled back up to Esme, tangling his legs up with hers as he felt her nose against his jaw, causing his heart to flutter again in familiarity, “Mm. Keep doing that and I might never get out of bed…”

He gave a quiet laugh tilting his head to the side to brush her nose with his, before planting a tiny kiss on her lips. His mind played over them getting back to the room, nearly breaking down the door because he was drunk off his ass and couldn’t find the keyhole. Luckily, Esme had managed to open it for him, before he destroyed the doorframe. And how did he thank her? By helping her out of her pants.

Dean laughed at the thought, leaving his face close to hers as his phone buzzed on the table. He ignored the first text, brushing his fingers down her jaw, “I don’t think Sam’s going to let us be alone much longer. He’s probably pissed, but…if he wants me, he can come to find me.”

He scoffed against her lips with a wide smile.

Esme smiled contently as Dean snuggled back up with her and tangled his legs with hers and then felt his heart flutter. She opened her eyes, blinking the sleep from them “Then my plan is working.” she said with a laugh in her tone. Her smile grew when he turned his head, brushing his nose with her, then kissed her. She returned his kiss and closed her eyes once more. The events from last night playing again in her mind. It was a wonder the two of them ended up making it to the room, even if she wasn’t as drunk as Dean was.

She remembered taking the key from him because he was having trouble finding the keyhole, and once they were in the room and they shut the door, he thanked her by sweeping her off her feet and into bed. When Dean laughed, she figured he was remembering the same thought she was. Esme opened her eyes at hearing his phone buzz on the table. It was obvious he was ignoring it as he brushed his fingers along her jaw, giving her a little shiver. “I think you may be right about that.” she laughed.

“If he has to come looking for you, I’m sure he’ll be even more pissed.” She grinned and rubbed her nose against his. Then she brought her hand to rest on his cheek, brushing her thumb over his lips before kissing him.

Dean rolled his eyes and smiled, “You’re right…He’s so possessive.”

He laughed, and kissed her back, quickly wrapping his arms around her and pulling her on top of him, while pulling the covers up over their heads, still ignoring Sam’s texts, and the call that followed.



Madison sat on the floor of the safe house, running her finger along a line in the hardwood floor. She hadn’t slept, as she was quickly finding that as human as she felt, she didn’t have the same needs as Sam, or other humans she had watched on the small tv in front of her.

She picked up a piece of cereal out of the bowl in front of her, and popped it into her mouth, taking in every bit of the flavor in the sugary treat. She sighed happily, pulling her legs up to her chest and glancing over at Sam, who seemed agitated and was messing with his phone.

Castiel sat opposite to her, watching her intently, which caused her to raise an eyebrow. She hadn’t noticed him staring, until now.

“What are you thinking about?”, she asked him, and he sighed.

“So, you can’t hear my thoughts.”, he asked back, causing her to shake her head lightly mid chew, “But if I project them, it hurts.”

A nod.

“Okay. Well that’s something. How does eating the enjoyable sugary treat make you feel?”, he asked innocently.

Madison stopped chewing again, and swallowed the cereal in her mouth, while she thought about the answer, and then smiled brightly, “Happy. I like it.”

“Good. Good.”, Castiel smiled in relief, “Then the next time that you’re not with Sam, I would like for you to think about the cereal, and how it made you feel. Breathe and just focus on that. You have to control your powers, or people are going to get hurt. Sam could even get hurt.”

Madison looked down at the bowl sadly, glancing back over at Sam with a nod.

Esme had smiled more at his eye roll to her comment. When he kissed her back and quickly wrapped his arms around her, she laughed with a small gasp as he pulled her on top of him and the covers over their heads. Yep, Sam was definitely going to be beyond pissed about this, but if Dean was okay with it so was she. It looked like Dean was going to milk this time with her for all it was worth, and she was completely fine with that.



Sam sat at a table staring at his phone with a look of irritation, waiting for Dean to return his calls and texts. He and Esme had been out all night and still hadn’t made it to the house. He had an idea what had happened between the two of them, but he still couldn’t help but let his mind drift to think of something bad happening to them. He sighed heavily as he continued to stare at the phone in his hand before dialing Dean’s number again. It rang and rang until Dean’s voicemail picked up again. Sam sighed in irritation and pinched the bridge of his nose as he listened to Dean’s voice.

“Dean! Answer your damn phone!” He ended the call and almost slammed the phone on the table. He was so caught up in trying to get ahold of Dean that he didn’t really hear much of what Castiel and Madison were saying. A little while passed, Sam picked up his phone again after not hearing from Dean yet. He typed another text to Dean.

Dean, where the hell are you?
Call or text me back

He hit send and tossed the phone on the table again. He then shot up from the table and grabbed his jacket. “I’m going to go find them.” he called over his shoulder. He grabbed his jacket, opened the door, and walked out, not waiting for a reply from either Castiel or Madison. Sam made his way to the Impala and got in, putting the keys into the ignition, and started the car. He almost peeled out as he left the house to go find Dean and Esme. She drove to the bar he knew Dean went to while in Sioux Falls, then searched for Esme’s car from there. He soon spotted it at a motel and he pulled in.

Walking inside, he spoke to the woman behind the counter, explaining who he was looking for. She smiled and nodded. “Oh yeah, they came in here late last night pretty drunk. They’re in room 219.” she told him. “Thanks.” he said, turning and walking out. Sam couldn’t help but sigh in relief knowing that Dean was alright, but was pissed that he hadn’t contacted him. Sam made his way to the room Dean and Esme were staying in. When he reached the door, he stood there for a moment, then banged on the door hard. “DEAN! OPEN THE DOOR, I KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE!” he yelled.

Madison noticed Sam growing more agitated by the second as he attempted to get ahold of Dean. She could barely concentrate on what Castiel was trying to teach her as she worried for him, flinching at him snapping at Dean’s voicemail and slamming his phone on the table. She looked over to Castiel, who simply gave her a look, as if he had seen this all before.

“Sam? Sam wait!”, she yelled out when he rushed out of the house, running toward the door. Castiel stood and grabbed her arm, pulling her back to him, into a hug.

“Let him go…”, he muttered, sighing in his own frustration at how Sam and Dean fought at times. It was frustrating. He carefully pushed her away, and walked her over to the couch in the center of the room, helping her lower herself down, “He’ll be back. Sometimes Dean does…things that…up-upset Sam. When that happens, it’s best to just stay out of their way, until they figure it out.”

Madison sighed but nodded, figuring Castiel knew him better than she. She reached down to the floor and picked up her bowl of cereal, taking a nervous bite, wanting to truly do better to fit in with her new family.



Dean sighed in relief as his head hit the pillow and he pulled the blanket up around his chest with a bright smile. He opened his eyes and glanced over to Esme, just as Sam began assaulting the door to their room. Groaning, he raised a hand to rub his forehead, “And that would be my brother…”

He hoisted himself over to the side of the bed, and pulled the sheet with him, pulling it around his body and walking to the door. He didn’t want to answer, almost afraid that Sam was going to punch him for not answering his phone. Either that or he would throw a big temper tantrum in a room where he was the only one clothed. That thought made Dean laugh as he carefully unlocked the locks on the door, and opened it, narrowing his eyes in the sunlight.

“Ugh. Sam. What do you want, man? I just went out for drinks. It’s not like I’m…helpless or something.”, he stammered, shielding his eyes from the sun as he squinted, his head pounding. He saw the look on his brother’s face and rolled his eyes, “You’re mad…”

Esme laid next to Dean with her arm curled up under her head. A content sigh escaped her lips, followed by a smile. Her eyes cut to the door as Sam banged on it. Her smile faded as she heard him yelling through the door. She sighed heavily and shook her head. “Uh huh.” she whispered. As Dean got out of bed and pulled the sheet, she took hold of the blanket and pulled up over her chest and under her arms as she sat up in the bed. She held the blanket close as she used one hand to run her hand through her hair to get it out of her face.

She watched as Dean went to the door, unlocked it, and opened it to reveal Sam’s scowling face. The man was beyond pissed, and she could feel it. His anger hit her like a punch in the face, causing her to flinch slightly. Breathe girl, breathe. she told herself. She slowly took in breaths and slowly let them out as Dean spoke to Sam, and she tried to block out his anger. She turned her attention away from the door and bent one of her legs up towards her, then fiddled with a random loose thread on the blanket.

Esme could feel Sam’s anger building more from Dean’s words, and she was waiting for Sam to lower the boom on Dean. Then it happened, causing her to wince a bit as Sam yelled at Dean once again.



Sam was about to pound on the door once again, but Dean finally answered the door. He glared at Dean as he spoke to him, Dean’s words causing his anger to rise. “What do I want?!” he spat. He shoved Dean hard in the chest, forcing him back into the room, then stepped in and slammed the door behind him. He was so focused on Dean, he didn’t even notice Esme sitting in the bed behind Dean, covering herself with the blanket. A fire burned behind his eyes as he clenched his fists, wanting to punch Dean square in the face. “What the hell, Dean! You couldn’t pick up the phone and at least answer me!” he yelled.

“With everything coming down on our asses, you couldn’t pick up the phone and let me know where you were!?” He clenched his fists tighter at his sides as he glared at Dean. He closed his eyes tight briefly, then opened them again and swung a punch at Dean’s face. “I know you needed time away from it all, but…… Dammit, Dean!” Sometimes Sam couldn’t understand Dean’s thinking when it came to others trying to check up on him.

Yes, he understood he needed to get away from it all and wanted to reconnect with Esme, but that didn’t mean he had to shut him out and not let him know where he was. Especially when everything that's happening now around them.

Dean flinched when Sam shoved him back, quickly tying the sheet in a makeshift Toga around his body, as he figured Sam’s aggression was going to become an actual altercation, at this point, “Alright. Sammy calm down…we can talk about why you’re mad, which I don’t understand but…”

As he expected, Sam punched him, causing a loud crack to ring out through the room as his punch connected with Dean’s nose. He stumbled backward, grabbing the table with his hand as he fell, stabilizing himself. This wasn’t a fight he wanted with Sam, and was one of the very things he was trying to avoid. Not to mention, he had a horrible hangover and was naked, of all things. He also didn’t want Esme to have this first impression of his brother, seeing as she hadn’t really met him the day before. Sam wasn’t normally like this, unless he was pissed.

“DAMMIT SAM!”, he cried out, holding his nose with one hand, while pushing himself up from the table with his other. He pushed himself away from the table and groaned shaking the punch from his head. His brother forgot, at times that he was basically a giant, and his punches were like hitting someone with a brick. As he blinked his eyes back open, he muttered, “I have a headache, man…”

Knowing that his words would likely cause Sam to punch him again, he held up both hands, “Stop! Stop it. I’m sorry, okay? I wanted a drink. I wanted a break. I’m tired, man. You can take one too. The angels can wait and Lucifer isn’t going to suddenly become MORE of a threat because we take a night off.”

He then shoved his brother roughly with his palm, realizing that in Sam’s anger, he was immovable. He sighed and raised a hand toward Esme, “We’re fine. Everyone’s okay. I don’t wanna hurt you, man…”

Sam started at Dean, a fire still burning within his eyes. He watched as Dean stumbled backward from his punch. In his anger, he had forgotten how hard his punches could be. “I couldn’t care less about your headache!” he yelled. He balled his fist, getting ready to take another swing at Dean. He glared at Dean as he tried to keep his calm and keep him from punishing him again. “I know full well you wanted a drink and a break! And you don’t have to tell me I can take a break as well!” he continued angrily.

“But that doesn’t mean you just go MIA!” Sam saw the shove coming and planted his feet to become immovable. He took the shove from Dean, not budging an inch. He would not be shoved out of the way just like that. He could also see that Dean was trying to keep from fighting him. Sam looked over at the bed when Dean gestured towards it and Esme. She had just gotten off of it and was gripping the blanket tightly around herself. He watched as she made her way to the bathroom, looking a little sick as she closed the door.

He mentally kicked himself for blowing up in front of her, and not realizing that she was even in the room. He sighed heavily as he looked back at Dean, his face relaxing a tiny bit. It was clear to see that it still pissed him off that Dean went radio silent and didn’t answer any of the calls or text that he had sent him. Sam closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to calm himself. He knew Dean was right about what he said, but it still bothered him that he couldn’t send at least one message back on his whereabouts.

Dean kept his hands up, guarding himself from Sam as he watched him process what was going on in the room, and how he was behaving. He sighed in relief when he saw that his brother was calming down. He really didn’t want another fist fight between them. It always ended up with one of them seriously injured, and that someone was usually Dean.

He stepped up to Sam carefully, as he closed his eyes, and clapped a hand on his chest. After not being punched from the first touch, he wrapped his arm around his brother’s shoulders, hugging him roughly, “I’m sorry, alright? I didn’t mean to scare you. I should have called. And when we get back, we can switch out watch over the girl if you need some alone time. I get it.”

He pulled back from the hug, reaching a hand up to pat Sam on the side of the face, before curling his hands behind his neck to make him look him in the eyes.

“Sammy. I mean it. I’m sorry…”, he muttered before releasing him, and calling over his shoulder toward the bathroom, “Esme, you alright?”

Sam continued to get himself to calm down after his outburst, his eyes remaining closed as Dean stepped up to him and clapped a hand on his chest. With everything going on with the angels and Lucifer, it was hard for him to not get angered easily. He didn’t really want to fight Dean, and have one of them get seriously injured over it. It wasn’t until Dean hugged him did he open his eyes, and he sighed yet again. He gave a nod to Dean’s words, knowing that he meant what he said. God knew he needed a break from it all.

If he hung around it much more, he’d go crazy or blow up again from all the stress. As Dean patted his face, he cut his eyes over to look at him before Dean made him look at him fully. “I know. I’m sorry too, Dean.” he muttered. He looked at the bathroom door when Dean called over his shoulder to Esme. He stood there, waiting to hear her voice come from behind the door. To him, her face held almost the same look it did when they were in the diner. There was something different about this woman, but he couldn't put his finger on what it was.

He also didn’t expect her to hang around long enough for him to find out, either. Yes, she had a connection with Dean and Madison, but he still expected her to leave after everything was all said and done, especially after the way he just acted in front of her over Dean, not responding to his calls and texts. She must see him as a giant, possessive idiot. What a first impression.



Esme gently leaned against the bathroom down after she shut it and took in a deep breath. She wasn’t about to stick around in the room if the two were going to throw punches and yell at each other. Just feeling Sam’s anger was enough to make her start feeling sick and lightheaded. It was strange how one guy could hold so much anger to make her feel it so strongly, almost like she felt with Madison. It had been so long since she had been around others; she had lost some of her ability to block out the emotions of others.

She was going to have to work on building that back up if she planned on sticking around. Sighing, she pushed herself off the bathroom door and walked over to the toilet, making sure the lid was down. She sat down on it, propped her elbows on her knees, and rested her chin on her hands. She closed her eyes, enjoying that she couldn’t hear or feel much while sitting there. She ran a hand through her hair, then placed it back under her chin as she pushed back what she had felt from Sam.

Esme knew he’d be upset about Dean staying out all night and not answering his calls and texts, but she could never imagine that Sam would be that upset about it all. And now, here she was hiding in the bathroom from it all, in nothing but a blanket while sitting on the toilet. At hearing Dean’s voice, she sighed heavily in relief as it seemed they avoided a fist fight. “I’m fine!” she called to him, as she opened her eyes. She tried to make her voice sound as convincing as she could, but failed.

She mentally kicked herself as she heard how it came out. She remembered telling him she was an empath a while back, but she didn’t know if he’d remember or not or even tie how she was acting to it. Esme gave another small sigh as she continued to sit there.

Dean was relieved to hear that Sam had calmed enough to apologize for the punch, even though he deserved it, if he was honest. It was always an unwritten rule for them to make sure the other knew where they were at all times, because they were a team. They took care of each other and disappearing was usually pretty scary. He had to admit, if Sam had just up and disappeared overnight, with Lucifer looming and now them dealing with a Nephilum and all of her enemies she didn’t ask for, he would have flipped too.

He didn’t like the way Esme responded when he called out to her. Out of instinct, he walked to the bathroom door, gently pushing it open as to not scare her half to death, or accidentally walk in on anything that needed privacy. When he saw her sitting there, he tightened the knot he had on the sheet around his waist, and stepped carefully into the room.

“Hey…you okay?”, he asked gently, reaching a hand out to her as he squatted slowly in front of her. He placed the hand on her knee, rubbing his finger back and forth to try and comfort her, “I’m sorry about that. Things have been a little crazy for us, lately. We’re both on edge, Sam most of all.”

He tried to catch her eyes with his, to hopefully show her that he was calm, and that the situation had passed for the most part. His nose was bleeding a bit, which he barely noticed, although there was a good chance his nose was broken from the punch Sam managed to land. His nose twitched when he realized it still hurt, but he never moved his eyes from hers.

Esme stared at the door from the toilet, knowing that Dean would walk through the door at any moment from the way she answered him. That was always one of her downfalls. If she felt a certain way, she couldn’t hide it from her voice or her eyes. They always gave her away. It had always been that way for her. Dean had always picked up on in the past as well. Her eyes went to the doorknob when she heard it, then watched the door slowly open. She lowered her eyes to the floor when Dean walked in. He had come to check on her just like she knew he would, all because of her tone.

As he knelt down in front of her, her eyes went to his hand he placed on her knee, watching his finger move back and forth. “I’m okay and I understand.” she sighed. “Just a lot of tension in the air. You know how it is for me. I also didn’t want to be in there if you two threw more punches.” she mumbled. “Not like I could have done much being in only a blanket.” Feeling he was calm, she lifted her gaze to meet his and noticed that his nose was bleeding a little. Her eyes softened with concern as she saw his nose twitch. Without her gaze leaving his, she grabbed some tissue and gently cared for his nose.

“I can’t help but feel I’m a partial reason for this happening, though. I’m sorry.” When she had finished, she threw away the tissue and placed a hand on his. Then placed her other hand on his cheek, leaned forward and ever so gently kissed his nose just like the last time he had his nose broken. She pulled away to look back into his eyes, her own eyes soft and her hand still on his cheek.



Sam had nearly finished calming down when he heard Esme’s reply to Dean. He didn’t know her, but could tell that something was bothering her. He looked at Dean, and saw that he didn’t like the way she answered him. He watched as he walked to the bathroom down and slowly opened the door before stepping inside. He then went and sat down in a chair at the table in the room, waiting for one or both of them to come out of the bathroom. He actually thought about leaving and going back to the house, but he liked his time away for a little while. He sat quietly for a bit, then pulled out his phone and fiddled with it as he waited.

Sam hoped Esme was alright, and he hadn’t upset her in some way from the way he had acted when he came into the room. His thoughts then went to how he had almost started a fight with Dean. If that had happened, it was possible Esme could have gotten caught up in and gotten hurt just trying to get out of the way. He sighed at the thought, then he looked at the door of the room.

“I get that…”, he muttered as she explained that things hadn’t changed for her, as far as feeling other’s feelings pretty intensely. She had told him she was an empath, but it was something that hadn’t come up again, really. But he should have known that she still dealt with those emotions, because of the way she acted when Madison was lashing out at them, “And I wasn’t planning to fight him. Sammy didn’t want to fight me. He just needed something to punch and..well I was something. I wouldn’t have ever put you in the middle of all that.”

When he finished explaining the situation, he flinched as she blamed herself and cleaned the blood from his nose, which he appreciated, but he shook his head, “No. You didn’t do anything. I’m the one who got wasted and brought you here.”

He gave a little smirk, looking down at her hand, before flinching again when she touched his cheek. His concern turned to relaxation as he leaned into her hand and closed his eyes, a small smile coming up on his face as she kissed his nose.

“I think my nose is broken…”, he muttered as he opened his eyes, staring at her lips briefly. He leaned forward and placed a sweet kiss on her lips, turning the hand that was in hers over and squeezing her hand in his palm gently, “And we should probably get dressed. Sam’s cool, now, I think.”

Esme had listened to Dean explain he wasn’t planning on fighting Sam, and Sam didn’t want to fight. She knew neither wanted to, but with Sam’s emotions high, it could have happened. She also knew that Dean wouldn’t have put her in the middle of it. She had also noticed his flinch when she had blamed herself for his getting punched in the nose by Sam. A small smile had come to her lips. Of course, he wouldn’t let her blame herself for it happening and turn the blame on himself. He never did like it when she blamed herself for something.

She hadn’t expected him to flinch when she touched his cheek, but saw his concern turn to relaxation as he leaned into her hand, which was what she had been going for. When he smiled at her kissing his nose, she smiled back. Esme nodded in agreement to his comment on his nose. From the sound she heard when Sam’s fist made contact, it was highly possible. When he leaned in and kissed her, she returned it just as sweetly and brushed her thumb across his cheek. She smiled warmly as he gently squeezed her hand in his and nodded in agreement.

“I think you’re probably right about that.” she said with a little laugh. “I sure hope so. My stomach is too empty and my head hurts too much to deal with that again.” she said with a grin. Esme then leaned in and kissed him deeply, letting it linger before she pulled back with a warm smile upon her lips. “So….. Who’s going to get my clothes? Me or you?” she grinned with a small laugh.