She Talks to Angels | {BOOK 2}

25|Saying Goodbye

The next day, I realized I would have to wait until the bus was deserted to find the lock of hair, so I was forced to go through the entire day at the school before I could act on what I'd learned. I was heading back to the library after a break when I came across Sam and a young woman in the hall. I was just in time to see the young woman stab Sam in the stomach.

"You got tall, Winchester," she sneered.

She kicked Sam in the face and he fell to the ground. I started to rush forward, but then noticed Sam pull something out of his pocket and when the young woman came at him again, he forced a handful of salt into her mouth. The ghost appeared to be ripped from the young woman's body and flew out the door. She collapsed, and Sam just held her, looking around. He spotted me at the other end of the hall, and we stared at each other for a long while.

After taking the young woman to the nurse for a check up, I helped Sam out to the Impala where Dean was waiting.

"Whoa! What happened?" he demanded.

"The ghost just attacked Sam," I replied, helping the younger Winchester into the car.

"That's impossible. We torched the bones."

"Barry Cook's bones?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"The ghost isn't Barry. It's Dirk McGregor Jr. I already talked to his father. He's a bus driver for the school. Dirk OD'd when he was 18. Apparently he had a rough time in school. He lost his mom to cancer when he was 13 and took it pretty hard. His dad had been working three jobs at the time, so Dirk was the one caring for her."

The boys were quiet as I summarized what Dirk Sr. had told me the day before.

"Between that and the bullying, Dirk just couldn't take it any more."

"So, where's Dirk buried?" Dean asked.

"He's not. His dad had him cremated. But there should be a lock of his hair in a Bible on his dad's bus."

⁘

Sam and Dean stood by with their shotguns while I got the hair from the Bible. As soon as I had my hands on it, Dirk's ghost showed back up to try and stop us. Sam and Dean shot at him while I burned the lock of hair.

"Hurry up!" Dean hissed at me.

"I'm going as fast as I can, Winchester," I snapped back at him.

After a few more tries, I finally got the lighter to start and held the hair over the flame. The end caught, and I dropped it inside the trash can at the front of the bus while it burned. In the isle, Dirk's ghost also went up in flames with a scream. We were all breathing heavily and Sam poured a water bottle into the trash to extinguish the flames.

"So," Dean began after a few moments of silence, "does this mean you'll be joining us again?"

"Dean, I-"

"What the hell was so important that you had to leave without a word, Eleanor? Not to mention turning off your GPS so you couldn't be tracked down," Dean continued, not giving me a chance to finish. "We needed you around, you know. We were dealing with demons and angels that were both out for blood. And don't get me started on the other cases we had to work without you."

"I had to walk away, Dean," I argued. "I couldn't stand the thought of losing you again. And then when I went to find you for comfort, you and Anna were... So, I had to leave. I had to take some time for myself, clear my head a little."

I was vaguely aware of Sam shifting his weight uncomfortably behind Dean, but I was only focused on the elder brother while we continued to fight.

"Me and Anna?" Dean repeated. "That's rich. Especially since I'm sure the whole reason you're in this town is because of Brigham."

"So what if the reason I'm here is because of Brigham? You can't compare that to you and Anna, Dean."

"Why not?"

"Because Brigham and I never..."

It was silent in the bus, the awkward tension thick in the air around us. It was suffocating, threatening to consume all three of us and suddenly it became imperative to get out of the confined space as quickly as possible. I was the first off, taking greedy gulps of the fresh air once my feet hit the pavement.

"Ellie," Dean whispered behind me.

I turned to face him, a pained expression on my face.

"I'll join you guys again, Dean. Just let me say goodbye first. I left him without a word last time, and I'm not about to make that same mistake again."

Dean nodded in understanding, heading over to the Impala without a word. I looked over at Sam, who was still standing off to the side awkwardly.

"I'm sorry, Sam," I apologized.

"You don't have to apologize, Ellie," he shook his head. "You did what you had to do. And honestly, I've been waiting for you and Dean to blow up at each other like that since we arrived."

I chuckled, smiling up at him and he smiled back. Slinging an arm around my shoulders, he and I walked together back to the Impala. We headed back to the school and I climbed out. I headed inside, filling out my letter of resignation and leaving it for the principal. Then I headed out to my car and headed back to the house, the Impala following me the entire time. We all headed inside, and we watched TV until Brigham got home a few hours later.

From the moment he laid eyes on the scene in the living room, his whole demeanor changed. I ignored Dean's burning gaze in the back of my skull as I grabbed Brigham's hand and led him back to the bedroom.

"You're leaving with them."

It was a statement, not a question that passed Brigham's lips, but I nodded anyway.

"They helped with the ghost at the school. And we still have the whole deal with the 66 seals to figure out," I said.

"You're not coming back this time, are you?" Brigham asked.

"I... I don't think so," I whispered.

I felt a tear escape down my cheek, and Brigham stepped forward, brushing it away with the pad of his thumb.

"I love you, Eleanor Dawson," he told me.

"I love you, too, Brigham Lewis," I whispered.

"No, you don't," he shook his head. "Not like you love Dean. And that's okay. I can live with that. You two have more history than we do."

"Brigham," my voice broke as I uttered his name.

He leaned in, kissing me and I pushed back, deepening the kiss briefly. All too soon, he pulled away, stepping back so there was some distance between us.

"I'll let you pack. See you around, Eleanor."

With that, he exited the room, leaving me alone in tears with my heart breaking.