once bitten (and twice shy)

8. for better and for best

🎄FOR BETTER AND FOR BEST🎄

"Lin, treasure of my heart, my favourite human, kind soul-"

"What do you want, Miranda?" Lin asked, not one to wait around for her bullshit. His sister clearly had no interest in it either, dropping the act immediately.

"Candles," she said, cutting the pleasantries quickly. "They're in my room, top drawer in my bedside table. Thanks brother dearest."

Lin had no idea where all the time went. Before, it was 3:30 and they decided to start setting up. Somehow, the hours trickled by at it was already nearing six, the sun dipping below the horizon and casting their still powerless cabin into the darkness. 

There wasn't even that much to set up, but like always, their little group had the ability to make any easy situation into a difficult one. Retrieving candles was fine though. He could do that.

Climbing the stars two at a time, he went upstairs to go to Miranda's room at the end of the hall. 

"Miranda?" a voice called out. What was Gen doing here?

"I'm afraid it's just her superior brother," he said instead, raising an eyebrow at his ex-girlfriend. "What are you up to?" he asked, stepping into the room and pressing it shut behind them.

"Candles. Miranda said that they were in her closet somewhere, but for the life of me I cannot see them."

"That's cause you're a little pipsqueak," he teased, taking delight in the way her nose wrinkled at the name. "Wait. The closet? She told me to get them from the drawer," he murmured, walking over to check out the place she had told him the candles would be. "And they are."

"If she sent me on a wild goose chase, I swear to God," Gen muttered rolling her eyes. "There is still so much shit to sort out for tomorrow. Apparently family friends are coming up tomorrow now as well, and I said it's fine, but now we need enough food and-" Gen stopped, rattling the door knob around. "Lin, did you lock the door?"

Lin's brow furrowed, and he moved to try his hand at opening the door as well. "No, I didn't. It's locked though."

Miranda Park, you are a dead woman, Lin thought murderously.

"I'm calling Dean," he announced, praying that the phone line would go through.

"Lin?"  Good. Dean could probably figure out how to open it. It was his house after all. If he couldn't get them out, no one could.

Line really hoped he could open the door.

"Yup," he confirmed, putting the call on speaker. "Gen and I are both stuck in Miranda's room The door locked behind us and we can't get out. Are there keys to this thing?"

"Yes."

Lin raised an eyebrow, expecting more and perplexed when Dean said nothing more, yet was also very obviously not moving. "Can you get them?" he slowly asked.

"No."

"No?" Gen echoed, surprising Lin by coming up behind him. "Dean, there's so much shit to do, we need to get out of here."

"No, I can't," he repeated, sounding somewhat apologetic. "But I can tell Miranda where they are, and she can unlock you two."

Lin felt the sudden urge to throttle his sister and her devious and blatant matchmaking tendencies. "Miranda, huh? And why can't you?"

"I have to warm up the soup."

The soup. For fuck's sake. Dean choosing soup over him was a kick in the gut. Especially considering that Dean, resident rich boy, could not cook, which included warming food up.