TRAVELLER

Chapter 11

"Okay. Stop. Pull over." Deans head turned to me shock written all over his face from my sudden outburst.

After turning off the ignition to the car, Dean waited patiently yet clearly unnerved for my next set of words.

"I am not doing this with you right now. I am not playing a game with you, you think this is fun for me? That I'd choose to be here right now sat in silence in a hot car, sticky with sweat, extremely hungry and thirsty, for what? What do I get out of this experience? Nothing. You can sit here thinking that I am the problem but I am not, I had as much control coming here as you did so I am telling you now that I've had enough with being punished for it, for something I have no control over." My eyes didn't leave Dean's as I relayed my feeling to him, his eyes softened under my own almost daring him to interrupt what I was saying. "Of course, I understand your hesitancy to trusting me but you have to let me prove myself to you. I have watched you and your brothers lives pass by on screen and if there is one thing that stands out constantly in every season and episode is the love you have for your brother Sam, and let me assure you that I would never do anything to hurt either of you" I caught myself before I said, 'I love you both'. In truth I did love them, I loved all that Sam and Dean's characters represented and now seeing them I loved them as people.

Dean gripped the steering wheel and turned his head to look out of the window looking at the cars that whipped past us as we sat stationary at the side of the road. When he still didn't speak again I spoke again. "All I'm asking is that you stop punishing me."

"I don't want to. I don't mean to." I was still looking at him even though he was still facing away from me. I was kind of expecting more than I received but his face was telling me more than his mouth did. His poker face was not good enough to fool me into thinking that he held no emotion. Whether those emotions were for me or for what I had said I didn't know but either one was enough for me to have faith in the fact that there was still more to his façade that he kept attempting to radiate but somehow kept slipping away at moments while we were together.

"I know. I'm sorry when I slip into a conversation as if I am a part of your family or like I know you, but in my mind, I am and I do know you. In a way, anyway." I took a breath in before finishing. "I will try to be more reserved when it comes to the way I talk and act around you if you try to give me a little leeway. Have we got a deal" I stuck my hand out hoping to get his agreement. For a second I thought that he was going to reject the offer until he reached out and slotted his right hand in mine and shook it firmly.

This agreement seemed to set in place quickly as soon as we had pulled out back into the road we were pulling back into a diner parking bay. We took our time ordering food and a drink inside with small talk breaking up the eating and drinking, an hour later and we were back on the road with a much better atmosphere radiating from both of us.

With a click of the cassette that had been playing on repeat for the last several hours was ejected from the hole. "Pick something out. All the cassettes are in the glove compartment". I pulled out a handful placing them on my lap so that I could look over each of the labels carefully, I came to a Beatles tape and smiled at my choice, I loved them something me and Dean had in common.

I slipped the tape into the player before putting all of the others back. As the first song came on I leant back into the back of the seat, relaxing into the leather. Not knowing still where I sat with Dean yet I only began with humming along with each song that played.

Feeling full and somewhat satisfied I was able to drift off into a light sleep.

I don't know when I awoke I saw Dean smiling through my half-shut eyelids. However, when my eyes caught his, his warming smile dropped from his face he spoke relatively softly when he said "You were singing in your sleep you know? Do you usually do that?"