The Road So Far

chapter 3

"Rise and shine, Hunter" Dean calls out,  yanking the covers off of her.

"Five more minutes," she groans, pulling a pillow over her face.

"Come on, get up. You've got school in an hour."

"Fine." She drags herself out of bed, grabs her clothes for the day, and stumbles into the bathroom for a shower. After a quick rinse, she gets dressed, her movements sluggish but determined. When she steps out, Dean hands her a bag packed with all her school essentials.

"Here's all your stuff for school. I'm driving you and Jack. Once you're inside, head straight to the office to get your schedules. And for the love of God, don't let Jack do anything stupid."

"Got it," she mutters, still not fully awake.

"Good. Now go wait in the car. I'll grab Jack." He says.

Hunter  makes her way out of the motel room, heading toward the familiar black impala. She hops into the front seat, plugs in her headphones, and lets the music drown out her thoughts. A new school, another fresh start. Same old routine."

Meanwhile, Dean walks into Sam and Jack's room. "Is the kid ready?" he asks, glancing around.

"I think so," Jack replies. adjusting the strap of his backpack.

"Alright, but before we head out, there are a few rules." Dean's voice drops to a serious tone. "You have to stay with Hunter all day. No wondering off. You have every class together, so there is no excuse for you two getting separated. And listen- if anyone says anything to her, or if she gets hurt... I'll kill you."

Jack nods. "I understand."

"Good. Grab your stuff, let's go. Later, Sammy."

After a quick goodbye, they head to the car. Dean slides into the drivers seat with a grin. Hunter glances at Jack in the rearview mirror and gives him a faint smile before turning her attention to the road again.

"Let's ride," Dean says, cranking up the volume on the radio.

Hunter chuckles softly as the car pulls away. Fifteen minutes later, they pull up in front of the high school. Dean stops the car, turning to face them.

"Alright, you two. Don't draw any attention to yourselves. Just get through the day."

"We got it, Dean. I'll see you after school," Hunter assures him, then adds, "Love you."

"Love you too, kiddo."

She shuts the door, and she and Jack walk toward the entrance. Hunter sighs, eyeing the building. "Here it is, Jack—high school. Eight hours of sitting with smelly, stuck-up teenagers, learning stuff we'll never need."

Jack just nods as they head to the office to pick up their schedules.

"How can I help you?" the woman behind the desk asks.

"Uh, we're new. We need our schedules," Hunter explains.

"Ah, you must be Hunter and Jack Page." She hands them two pieces of paper. "I'll have someone show you around."

"Thanks," Hunter says with a polite smile. After a few minutes of waiting, a student walks in.

"Hey, I'm Gryffin. You must be the new students. Come on, I'll show you around."

Hunter hands him her schedule, and he glances at it. "So, Hunter, huh?"

She blinks. "How do you know my name?"

He laughs. "It's on your schedule."

"Oh. Right." She looks away, embarrassed.

They follow Gryffin through the halls as he points out various classrooms. "We're in the same homeroom—Mr. West's class. He's pretty cool. You'll like him."

Jack finally speaks up. "That's good to hear."

After a brief tour, Gryffin grins. "I've got the same third and fourth periods as you guys, so I'll see you then. Good luck with the rest of the day."

Hunter and Jack enter their first class, feeling the weight of every stare from the students already seated. The teacher smiles warmly at them.

"Good morning, I'm Mrs. Williams. You must be our new students. Why don't you introduce yourselves?"

Jack goes first. "Hi, I'm Jack. Nice to meet everyone." He quickly takes his seat.

Hunter freezes. She hates introductions. "Uh, h-hi. I'm Hunter," she stammers, cringing inwardly as a few kids snicker.

"Great. First day and I've already embarrassed myself," she thinks, heading to her seat. Please don't let this day get worse.

The first two classes pass uneventfully, and soon it's lunchtime. As they walk toward the cafeteria, someone grabs Hunter's shoulder from behind. Instinctively, she whirls around and punches them square in the face.

"Ow! Son of a—" The guy stumbles back, clutching his nose. It's Gryffin.

"Oh crap, I'm so sorry! I didn't know it was you. I just—I hate when people sneak up on me," Hunter stammers, horrified.

Gryffin waves her off, though he's still rubbing his face. "No, my bad. Shouldn't have grabbed you. You've got a mean right hook, though."

"Let me make it up to you. I'll buy you lunch," Hunter insists as they walk into the cafeteria.

She buys him lunch, and the three of them sit together. "Seriously, sorry again," she says for what feels like the hundredth time.

Gryffin chuckles. "It's fine, really. So, tell me about yourselves."

Hunter shrugs. "Not much to tell. I'm Hunter, this is Jack."

"Where're you guys from?"

"Kansas," Jack replies between bites of his sandwich.

"And what brought you here?"

"Our dad's job. He's military, so we move around a lot," Hunter explains smoothly.

They spend the rest of lunch chatting, even Jack opening up more than usual. The rest of the school day is uneventful, and when it's finally over, they wait outside for a ride.

To their surprise, Cas shows up instead of Dean. "Sam and Dean had to handle something with the ghoul case. I'm here to take you back."

They pile into the car, heading back to the motel, another day behind them.