#ttt 12

You had seen him in pictures that decorated the southern wall of Sam's living room, so you recognized him immediately. But you hadn't expected him to be this tall. His eyes focused on you for a while, narrowing a little, but slid past you and immediately lit up the moment he saw Jo and Sam.

Jo, who had been slightly grumpy after the long flight, brightened up the instant she saw Dean, and she all but ran across the asphalt, flinging herself into Dean's arms who kissed her deeply the moment she landed against his chest. He let her go for a while and hugged Sam, clapping him on the back. "It's good to see you, Sammy."

You had been trying to walk a few steps behind the two of them, trying to be inconspicuous, as if that would avoid the inevitable interaction. Sam noticed and shook his head a little, a soft smile playing on his lips. Before you could understand, he grabbed your hand and pulled you ahead, right next to him. Dean straightened up a little, eyeing you with mild suspicion.

"And you would be?" He asked, green eyes boring into you. There was nothing hostile about the way he looked at you, but there was distinct protectiveness in his eyes.

"I-I.." You stuttered.

"She's Y/N," Sam said, barely concealing his grin. "My girlfriend."

"Holy…" Dean's eyes widened as he looked from Sam to a smiling Jo and back at you. "You're the Tic Tac Toe girl?"

"That's me," you squeaked, the nervousness hitting you like a ton of ice. You still had no idea what he made of you.

"Well I must tell you," Dean smirked, "You are way out of my brother's league. You sure you like him? And that you didn't make a bet over that stupid game to date him or whatever?"

You laughed at the ridiculousness of the whole situation, instantly feeling the ice break.

"I'm Dean," he smiled, extending his hand. You grasped his in yours, smiling too.

"It's so good to finally meet you, Dean. I've heard a lot about you."

"Likewise," Dean nodded. "You'd be surprised about what Sammy did tell me though. Ain't that right Sam?" Dean grinned wickedly at his brother and Sam's face went tomato red as he blushed.

"You have my complete attention then," you deadpanned and Dean laughed. You warmed up to him immediately.

"Well Y/N, then you and me have a lot to talk about."

The ride towards the house went by in comfortable chatter. You insisted that Sam ride shotgun since Jo had no problem getting in the back with you. It was fascinating seeing him interact with Dean. It was beyond just two brothers talking, it was best friends. The usually suave Sam was boyish and little whiny around his big brother, and Dean teased him to no end. It made you smile a lot.

Dean made sure to include you in conversations that didn't have anything to do with you. When the three of them shared news about old friends and family, Dean made sure that he told you about what they were talking even before Sam did, and you appreciated the gesture. The way Sam looked at his brother, told you that he did too.

Too soon it seemed, the car was parked in front of a big white house- bigger than yours at least- with a huge, inviting front porch.

Sam turned back and took your hand in his, kissing your knuckles. "Welcome home."

You managed a weak smile, gulping. The nerves that had diluted because of the easy conversation in the car returned in full swing when you saw the house. It was amazing how an extremely non-threatening piece of architecture could terrorize you.

You were shaking so bad by the time you got out of the car, that walking seemed like a task. Sam caught up with you outside, taking your hand in his, and squeezing it. You waited for Dean and Jo to walk up ahead of you, and then followed with Sam. Jo was to have dinner with them and head to her parent's house.

The few short minutes between ringing the bell and till someone opened the door seemed like years to you. A beautiful woman with soft blonde curls answered the door, her face splitting into a genuine and warm smile when she saw Sam.

"Hey mom," Sam called and she rushed forwards to throw her arms around his waist.

"It's so good to see you, Sam. I missed you." She kissed his cheek.

"I missed you too, mom," he said, and she hugged him closer. In doing so, the sleeves of white blouse hitched a little, revealing burn scars on her arms, visible underneath the hem.

What the hell?

You gave Jo a questioning look and she nodded, as if saying "afterwards."

His mother, Mary you remembered, took turns to hug Dean and then Jo, whispering sweet greetings, the smile still in place. Then she noticed you.

She seemed too polite to straight out ask who you were, so Sam stepped up.

"Mom," he said, smiling so wide, that heat pooled in your cheeks. "This is Y/N. She's my girlfriend."

Mary's eyes went wide as she looked at you, and then back at Sam. You had expected her to be surprised, but tears seemed to threatening the corners of her eyes as she took you in. It was slightly unnerving.

"What? How?" She asked.

"I-" Sam cleared his throat. "She works at the office. Started a week back."

She reached out to you, taking both your hands in hers. "It is such a pleasure to meet you, Y/N. This is such a pleasant surprise."

"I am so sorry for turning up without any notice. I hope I'm not intruding anything," you smiled hesitantly.

"Oh no… of course not dear," she said, pulling you into the house. "You're more than welcome."

"Thank you," you said earnestly, a little overwhelmed by such a warm welcome. "You have a lovely house, Mrs. Winchester."

"Mary, please," she smiled, as she guided you in. "Mrs. Winchester makes me seem old."

It was true, the house was really lovely. It was spacious and simple, yet classic and comfortable.

"You must be tired," she said, then turned to Sam. "Why don't you take her upstairs, show her your old room. The two of you can freshen up before dinner."

"Come," Sam took your hand and guided you up a grand, marble staircase. You had never been into such a big house. The one you had grown up in was small and cooped up, so this seemed a little otherworldly.

He guided you into the far end of the first landing and into the last room, never letting go of your hand. Once inside, you were directly met with wall size collage of pictures, posters and magazine cutouts. The adjacent wall was entirely covered with a cupboard full of books.

"This used to be my room when I stayed here," Sam commented from behind you.

It wasn't anything like his house back in the city. Wasn't as polished or classy, but it was still him somehow.

A queen size bed that would probably be small for him was roughly placed in the centre with a large window directly over it.

"It's a little small," he said, unfastening his jacket and throwing it over the bed.

Somehow the little gesture made you nervous. Sam was still dressed in two layers. In fact you had seen him in less than this, but maybe it was the fact that you were in a closed room; a room quite small, that had you breathing a little harder.

Get a grip, Y/N! He's your boyfriend, you admonished yourself.

A boyfriend you've never really touched, said the other voice in your head.

You turned towards the shelves, pretending to examine the books.

"So how many girls have you brought up in here?" You tried to sound casual, but the effect was marred by how breathy your voice sounded.

Sam laughed and it was a cheerful sound. It immediately put you at ease, the unnecessary worry from seconds ago dissipating.

"Does Jo count?" He asked. "We used to be cooped up one summer here a lot, trying to get back at Dean for all the pranking."

"No," you said, smiling at him. "That doesn't count."

"Well," he said, stepping forward and lightly putting one hand against your lower back, making your breath hitch. "You are the very first then, Miss Y/L/N."

You reached out to tug at the collar of his plaid. "That is such an honor then, Mr. Winchester."

"I do love it when you call me that," he said before dipping his head. Just before your lips could meet-

*knock knock knock*

"Sam," came Mary's voice, "You mind helping Dean with the bags?"

He closed his eyes, shaking his head, an apologetic smile playing on his lips. "I'll be right there, mom."

He pulled back, but not before pecking you lightly on your lips. It left your skin tingling.

He pointed towards a small door by the side of the cupboard. "The bathroom's in there. You can freshen up. I'll leave you to it then."

With one last wink, he was out of the door. The gesture made you giggle. What was this man doing to you? It was heady and confusing.

Seeing him as X was so much easier, but you had to remember that he was still your boss. Things were going to be 10 times more complicated when you got back home. You decided to ditch that thought and worry about it only when you had to.

You took a quick shower, and then threw the same shift dress back on owing to extreme lack of clothes, but without the scarf this time, before walking back down, searching for everyone else. Instead you only found Mary and Sam. He was sitting on a chair at the kitchen island and she was standing over him, running her fingers through his hair affectionately. Sam's eyes were closed and he had a peaceful expression on his face.

It seemed like a private moment, and you didn't want to intrude, so you turned around and made your way up the stairs, but just as you took your first flight up, you heard your name. Try walking away from that. It is not possible.

"That was some surprise you pulled on me, Sam," Mary said, making Sam laugh.

"More than a surprise, it happened too quickly," he replied.

"Whirlwind romance?" She guessed.

"Oh, you have no idea…" Sam left it there. He seemed to have no intentions of explaining that. Which might explain the pregnant pause before Mary said. "She is a beautiful girl, very charming."

You heard Sam sigh. "Tell me about it. I couldn't bear to spend the vacation away from her. But I wanted to see you guys too, wanted her to see you guys."

You suppressed a smile. He said he couldn't bear to be away from you.

"How long have been going around?"

"A week?" Sam answered.

Pause again. You couldn’t see the expression on their faces, but you were expecting her to be shocked to say the least. Who brings the girl along to see his family just after a week of going out? To stay with them?

It dawned on you then, maybe it wasn't just because he couldn't stay away from you, maybe it was because he was scared to stay away from you. The whole thing with Gordon had screwed more with him than you. Sam probably didn't want you away from his sights. He was terrified, and that sobered you up a bit.

"You really love her, don't you?" Mary asked, none of that shock you had expected was there in her voice, just pure joy. You felt extremely grateful towards her for the easy acceptance and love.

Sam cleared his throat. "Yeah, I do. And it scares me."

"It is supposed to scare you, Sammy. I know your fear is different, but if you don't give it a chance to subside, it never will," she said wisely.

"You know what?" Sam said abruptly. "You were right, mom. All those years that you kept telling me that there was someone out there for me too and that I just hadn't met her yet, I didn't believe a word of it. I was too faithless, maybe? But then she happened, and it was the craziest coincidence."

Before Mary could say another word, heavy boots thudded into the room.

"Mama's boy," you heard Dean comment teasingly, and the tension suddenly broke.

You dabbed at the corner of your eyes, made an unnecessary stomping noise and reappeared in the living room. Sam's eyes lit up the moment he saw you and he straightened up from his position where he was leaning against the counter.

"Hey," he said, walking up to you. "How do you feel about dinner?"

"I'm starving!"

"Good," he smiled. "The table is all set."

He walked you towards your chair and pulled it for you.

"Why, thank you, Sir," you smiled.

"The pleasure is all mine." His eyes glowed.

Just as he was about to sit down next to you, his phone rang. From the conversation that followed, it seemed like Sam had to leave.

"There's call from work. They need me at the Lawrence unit," he announced half-heartedly.

"It's 7:30, and a holiday," Dean pointed out. "C'mon, ditch it."

"No, I have to. We are reshuffling a lot of employees over the holidays. I'll have to go see what this is about," Sam sighed.

He bent down, and pecked you on your cheek, and you were highly aware of the three other pairs of eyes on you. "I'll be back soon… wait up for me!" There was something very endearing in his shyness. You blushed.

"Be back soon," you whispered.

He cast one longing look and was out the door, Dean let out a low whistle. "That boy is in way over his head."

Jo smacked him on his shoulders, making you giggle. They made a lovely couple. Dean brought out something in her, that wasn't always visible.

Normally you would have been awkward as hell amongst people you didn't know, but Dean and Mary completely put you at ease. The four of you were laughing at some joke when a older man appeared into the room. John Winchester.

One look at him, and you knew that was who he was. He was tall, just like his boys and just as handsome, but something in his demeanor shouted that he wasn't exactly the "open your heart" type.

Mary got to her feet and gave him a brief kiss, which he returned lovingly enough, but apart from that his expression was devoid of any emotion, even tiredness.

"Jo," he nodded towards your friend, as he took his seat at the head of the table.

"John," she nodded back.

"And who are you?" He asked, noticing you for the first time.

You cleared your throat. "I'm Y/N F/L/N. It's nice to meet you Mr. Winchester."

"She's Sam's girlfriend," Mary piped in from his side.

Mr. Winchester seemed to do a double take at the word girlfriend. He looked from you to Mary and back at you.

"Sam never mentioned a girlfriend," he said flatly, making you shift in your seat.

"I haven't known him for a long time," you said hurriedly. "Just a week."

"How? Do you work at the office?"

"Yeah," you said. "But that's not how I met Sam. We met at the bus stop."

It was starting to feel like Spanish inquisition, but suddenly Mr. Winchester spotted your neck.

"What happened to you neck?" He asked.

You looked down at the table and repeated the how Walker had accused you of plagiarism, and how Sam had thrown him out. That and the subsequent assault. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Dean's hands ball into fists, but the lack of verbal reaction told you that maybe he already knew. Either Sam or Jo had told him what had happened.

The silence that followed after you stopped talking was tensed. You looked up to see that Mary was looking horrified, her hand was pressed against her lips. Both Jo and Dean were angry. You could see that their hands were intertwined underneath the table. John however was looking at you, a calculated look in his eyes.

"I see," he said. His elbows rested on the table and the tips of fingers were touching each other. "What did you do before you joined WAA."

His indifferent tone surprised you, but you answered reflexively. "I graduated from USC three years back, interned at a firm in California and worked for another year and half at a firm close to home."

"They were the ones who referenced you here?"

"No Sir, I got in independently, without a reference," you answered. His detached voice was making you nervous.

"So you just randomly met Sam at the bus stop? Without any idea that he owns the multi-million franchise you work in?"

"N-No, Sir…" You were starting to get where he was heading with this, his eyes had become cold. All of a sudden you felt very lonely.

"Sam just decided to bring a week old girlfriend to meet his parents?" He continued.

Tears seemed to threaten your eyes and your lips trembled. You didn't know what to say, how to say. You wanted Sam to be next to you more than anything,

"That's enough dad!" Dean's voice cut in. "Give her a break. She had no clue who Sam was up until two days ago. The meet at the bus stop was pure chance."

John leaned back. "I was just pointing too many coincidences, that's all. Sam is after all the most eligible bachelor in town."

"John," Mary admonished. She looked positively scandalized.

It was suffocating to sit there. To look into John Winchester's distrusting eyes, face Mary and Jo's horror and worst of all Dean's protectiveness. He didn't have to speak out against his father over you.

"Excuse me," you mumbled, pushing the chair out of the way and exiting the room as fast as you could without actually running. The moment you reached the stairs, you fled, tears hot and heavy falling on your cheeks.

What had you been thinking? Agreeing to join Sam on the vacation. Of course everyone was going to assume you were with Sam for the money. This was how people were going to react in the office too when you got back. Your credibility be damned. You wanted to question if this thing with Sam was a good idea, but couldn't bring yourself to do it. Sam's kind, shy face swam into your mind and you couldn't bring yourself to regret your relationship with him.

But that didn't mean it didn't hurt like a bitch to be thought of that way. Because it did. It hurt like hell.

You closed the door of his room behind you and flung yourself on the bed, letting the sobs rack through your body. A rational part of your head told you to not make a big deal of it, but you couldn't pay attention to that part, maybe because John's demeanor had brought back every insult that Gordon had flung at you, to the surface.

Talentless. Manipulative. Opportunist. Bitch.

You didn't know how long it was, but the lights in the hallway outside dimmed. And sometime after, footsteps echoed, getting louder with every passing minute. You closed your eyes shut tight.

The door opened, and then closed after a beat. You heard the click, as Sam opened his watch and placed it on the table, then rustling of clothes. You imagined his coat coming off, then tie, but you didn't dare open your eyes.

"Y/N?" He whispered softly, his voice closer than you expected. "Are you up?"

You didn't move. Sam sighed, and you heard him move back.

He'd asked you to wait for him, and you knew why. Back before the two of you had left for dinner, you'd felt it, the tension, the way he looked at you and the glaring fact that the two of you had already confessed to loving each other.

You weren't blind. Sam was hot. And most of your time around him was lately spent thinking about how it would feel to slip your fingers under his shirt, feel his warm skin, and kiss every inch of it. You weren't naïve either, so you knew it was on Sam's mind too. You had caught him staring at you with need more than once today.

But you just couldn't do it. You couldn't bring yourself to look at him. You knew Sam wouldn't share his father's opinion, but you couldn't pretend that you were fine either. And if Sam asked you what was wrong, you couldn't tell him what happened at the dinner table. Hell no! It was better to pretend that you were asleep.

You were so lost in your own thoughts that the gentle hand on your arm made you flinch. You hadn't even realized when Sam had slipped into the bed besides you. But the flinch had done it, you'd given away that you weren't really asleep. However, you still kept your eyes closed, childishly hoping that Sam wouldn't have noticed. He withdrew his hand and you felt the bed shift as he turned away from you. Maybe he had been trying to pull you closer, and god you wanted him to, but John's words were still hanging thickly over you.

You waited for a while, paying too close an attention to Sam's breaths besides you, before lightly stepping out of the bed and the room, pulling his coat with you.

The house was both dark and cold, somehow the breeze still found its way into the drafty corridors, but even then, you felt suffocated, like not a single cell of your body belonged to this place. You found your way outside, into the back porch of the house that overlooked a snaking bend of the river. A single pier jutted out into it amongst tall untamed grass. With the moon shinning over it, it was a beautiful sight.

You pulled the coat tightly around you, fondly remembering the night at the bus stop when Sam had first offered one to you, as you slowly walked towards the end, finally sinking down and letting your feet dangle along the edge. It seemed like your mind was bursting full of doubt and hurt, but at the same time, you just wanted to lose yourself into the beauty that was ahead of you and not think of anything else.

"Well I didn't expect to see you here," said a deep a voice from behind. "But can't say I'm surprised either."

You turned around to see Dean standing behind you. How he'd snuck up so quietly was beyond you.

"Whom were you expecting then?" You asked with a half smile.

"My brother actually." Dean came up to you, taking a seat besides you. "You mind?"

You shrugged. "What made you think your brother would be out here, when he's here with his girlfriend?" You smirked.

He nodded, a smirk of his own forming on those full lips. It was definitely more impressive than yours.

"You see, I know my brother. The kid was 8 when he failed a math test. Disappeared at around 7 in the evening and me and mom went berserk trying to find him. Cause if dad had found out about his vanishing act, Sam would have been done for. That was the first night when I found him here. He was scared that he'd never be good at school again. He always turns up here when he's scared."

"What would he be scared of tonight then?"

Dean looked at you with unfathomable eyes, that were shining emeralds in the moonlight.

"Of losing you, Y/N," he said simply, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

You saw his expression become tender. "Look, I'm sorry about what happened at dinner. Dad's… well he's a little rough around the edges. He was just looking out for Sam."

"Without knowing me?" You asked, outraged, the suppressed anger finally coming out. "How could he just assume I'm with his son for the money? I mean, forget about how insulting that is to me. Didn't he for a second think how insulting it is to Sam? He's a good man, Dean. Why is it so hard for your dad to see that someone can fall in love with Sam for who he is?"

Dean sighed. "I know, and I'm sorry, Y/N. But Sam's had a hard luck, I don't know if you know-"

"I know," you cut him shortly. "Jo told me about Jessica and Madison… and Ruby too."

"So is it hard to see why dad might be a little harsh?"

You didn't want to see John's perspective. It was easier to stay mad.

"Hey, look at me," Dean coerced, and you gave in. "Dad is just the tip of this. You know the sort of crap people talk. It was why Jo never told about us in the first place. She wanted her peace. But you don't have that choice anymore. So you gotta decide what's more important for you."

"What do you mean?" You asked.

"You need to pick what you can deal with, sweetheart," he said. "Now, you can pick Sam and all the baggage that comes with him, or you can choose to be you, without him."

You thought back to the bus stop, to the little games etched on the seats along with cute notes. Sam was there for you when no one was, even when he didn't know it was you. And Sam was with you even after he exactly knew who you were. Come to think of it, there was really no choice at all.

You gave Dean a bright smile. "You know what I choose? I choose to be me, with him."

His answering smile was warm and you immediately felt at home. "That's my girl!"

"Thanks, Dean. I owe you one."

"You don't owe me a thing." he patted your knee. "Get a few hours, you got a big day coming up, and so do I."

You gave him a puzzled look, and he brought out a tiny box from his pocket, nodding towards it.

"Oh my goodness!" You squealed. "You're proposing?"

"Yeah, and I need your help," he winked. "Jo's planning to take you shopping tomorrow cause you don't have any clothes. Please stand her up."

"Done!" You grinned. "I'll take that boyfriend of mine out shopping instead. I heard he's stinking rich."

Dean chuckled, and it was a happy sound. "Up you come." He offered you his hand and pulled you up.

The two of you walked in silence till you reached the back door.

"Aren't you coming in?" You asked, when Dean stopped at the threshold.

"I gotta go back to my place," he said simply. Of course, you thought. Dean must have his own place in town. He probably only came out tonight expecting to see his brother.

"Thank you so much for doing this, Dean. I can see why Sam thinks so highly of you."

He looked down for a while, was he blushing?

"Anytime kid," he patted your head, and you immediately felt warm inside at the gesture. "Take care of yourself."

"You too," you smiled, before letting yourself in. It felt like every doubt, every burden was suddenly off your shoulders.

When you reached the room, Sam was facing away from you, his breathing still regular, but as you stepped in, you noticed a plaid and a pair of sweat pants laid on the back of the chair, where the coat had been.

Your breath caught in your throat. So that's what a mini heartbreak felt like.

Sam had been up when you had walked out of the room. He had been up, and he had known that you'd been awake too, that you'd been avoiding him. What he'd made of that you had no idea. But you guessed it must have hurt. Even then, he had been caring enough to set out clothes for you because you didn't really have any.

The inhibitions from the afternoon disappeared as you stripped, not caring whether Sam turned or not and put on the plaid and sweats. You slipped into the bed with every intention of slipping your arm around his waist but thought better of it. Sam didn't deserve half hearted guilty efforts, he deserved dignified love. Dean had been right. There was no half-assing this, you were either all in, or all out.

As you closed your eyes, scooting as close as possible to Sam without touching him in that tiny bed, you vowed that tomorrow, you'd make it up to him, because he was worth so much more than the trivial accusations. He was the best and you promised yourself that you'd do everything to show him exactly that.

A/N 2: If you ever liked one word of this series, or me as a writer/ person, please consider leaving feedback. Won’t lie, I’m going through a hard time right now. I could use some love.

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