Alive

Chapter 7: Castiel

"Safe house?  Where?"  I hear Dean ask over the phone while driving through a hard rain. 

The rain hits the windshield loudly as the windshield wipers try their hardest to make the road visible.  It's so loud that it sounds like static, or like someone's throwing a grouping of rocks on the car.

I wake up from my nap because of the loud rain, plus Dean's concerned tone of voice. I look over to see a very exhausted Sam still sound asleep.  How is even still sleeping through all this noise?

"Are you sure it was for us?" Dean asks. He waits a minute, pausing before replying again. He sighs deeply, clenching his jaw. Perhaps angrily? It seems like Dean is always mad about something.

"Alright, thanks man.  Hey. Be careful, alright?  Okay.  Bye." Dean says as he hangs up the phone. "What's going on?" I ask. Dean keeps his eyes on the road, trying to see through the hard rain as it hits the window roughly. "Apparently, a friend of ours, a fellow hunter, was attacked by a group of demons last night. He was ordered to give us a message. It was...some kind of warning." He explains shortly, not really giving me much.

I lean up closer to his seat as he says this, obviously intrigued. "What was the message?" I ask as the curiosity fills my tone of voice. I grip the back of his seat tightly and rest my head on the corner of his chair, speaking almost directly into his ear. Dean sits up straighter, driving carefully into the next lane.

"Fresh meat." He says with slight hesitation. He sighs, grabbing the steering wheel a little tighter. I narrow my brows in confusion. Huh? What the hell is that supposed to mean? "...What's that even mean?" I ask, not really understanding.

He gets a little agitated and it's clear in his voice, "You're fresh meat, Elena." His voice grows more stern and serious now. I look up at his reflection in the rear view mirror and watch as he holds is eyes close for a moment before shaking his head. I sit back. Taking in what he's just said.

Demons?

Me?

What would they want with me?

Fear begins to grow in the pit of my stomach but I hide it extremely well. I don't want Dean knowing I'm afraid at all.

"They found out we've got another, um...weakness, I guess you could say. You're someone we care about, so they're going to use that against us. Per usual. But they aren't after you Elena...it's us they want. They'll just use you to get to us." Dean says, trying to find some way to comfort me. However, the method he's using isn't working at all. How do that make it any better?

"We're going to my buddy's safe house way out in the middle of Grayson Woods. Just for a few days before ol' Ricky takes care of em. Sam and I will help, of course. So you'll probably be there alone for maybe a day or so but don't worry, it's covered in every symbol and demon proof concoction imaginable." He explains further, looking at me from the rear view mirror to see how I'm reacting.

Observing.

I slowly begin to nod as he says this, letting out a deep sigh as I choose to not really respond. Was all of this a mistake? I already have a huge target on my back, all because I'm with the Winchester brothers. I was trying to escape this life...not relive it.

I look out the window and am reminded of the cut on my head as it begins to throb. I lightly touch the still healing wound on the top of my head, wincing slightly--noticing the pain is definitely still there.

I realize Dean was definitely watching me again in the rear view mirror. His eyes are always on me, like a watch dog. He's always worrying about what I'm doing.