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You flopped onto your bed in the bunker, tired and feeling gloomy. You were happy with your life as a hunter. You’d chosen this way of living for a reason; protecting others from the horrors of the world that you weren’t sheltered from. You’d met Sam and Dean, teamed up with them on some hunts. Gotten to know them, moved to the bunker, started dating Dean. Everything was going as perfect as this life would allow. But it didn’t make the nearing holidays any easier. You couldn’t ignore the thoughts of your family. They were the main reason you’d wanted to protect others from the things that go bump in the night.
You’d accidentally brought a monster into your family’s home. You’d been so happy with him and the two of you were going to announce your engagement that evening. But he’d been running late and you were nervous. When he finally did arrive, he’d seemed off but you brushed it off as nerves. The night went great, and everyone had been moving to the living room after dinner. You knew this would be your chance to celebrate the news. You quickly fixed your hair in the mirror in the hallway that led to the living room. There was only you in the reflections, which is why you were startled by your then fiance’s arms wrapping around you. You felt his nose trailing along the column of your neck. You froze in his arms, scared and confused why you couldn’t see him in the mirror’s reflection.
As you opened your mouth to say something, anything, you felt a rush around the two of you. When the world was no longer a blur, you were far away from your parent’s house. You had no idea where you were, the only thing you could tell in the dimness was the slickness of the ground. You were silent, trying to make out anything in the room.
That’s when you hear it, the sounds of fighting. There was a crash, followed quickly by a snapping noise. Somebody crashed through a wall of the room you were in. Light streamed into the darkness, hurting your eyes. A tall figure laid just a few feet away, sprawled on the stone floor. As he stood up, your eyes caught on the glint of metal in his hands. A machete. He turned to face you, machete held up as he stared. You lifted your hands in front of you and took a small step backwards.
“What are you doing?” Your voice cracked in fear.
The stranger’s eyes moved down you before dragging up again. The hand with the machete lowered to his side, “Stay here. We’ll get you out of this mess, okay?” His kind tone contrasted with the hard look in his eye.
You nodded, easily agreeing with his demand. He quickly strode through the hole in the wall, raising the machete once again. You heard yelling from the other room. The occasional thud of something hitting the floor reached your ears until there was nothing but silence in the room. Soon, two tall figures stood in the hole, silhouetted by the light streaming in.
“Are you alright?” The one from before asked. “Sam, start the car. We’ll be there in a moment.”
You watched as he tossed a set of keys to the taller man, Sam. “I’m alright,” you weakly responded.
“Who are you? What happened?” He took off his jacket, wrapping it around your shoulders.
You explained the events of the evening, how you were taken here from your parent’s home by your fiance. The man introduced himself as Dean. He guided you out to his car, your eyes seeing your fiance’s body on the floor, his head feet away from it. You stumbled at the sight, Dean pulling you closer to him and guiding you toward the exit.
That was the day everything changed. Some for the worse, but a lot for the better. You sat up on your bed, reaching for the bottom drawer of the nightstand. You pulled out your phone from then and unlocked it, looking at the pictures you’d taken then. Before your life was ruined by a young vampire. How happy your younger sister looked. The sweet anniversary picture your parents posted. It was bittersweet. Knowing they were still out there, states away from you. That in the first few months of you disappearing from their lives they searched for you so hard. Eventually, they buried an empty casket. Not knowing you were in town for a hunt that week, and that you’d checked in on them every time a hunt brought you to that state.
A knock on your door drew you from your thoughts. Looking up, you saw Dean leaning against the doorframe, “When’d you get back?”
“Just a bit ago. Thought I’d let you know I was home,” he pushed off the wall and walked toward you.
“I’m glad you did,” you powered off the old phone.
Dean gave you an understanding smile, gesturing to the device. “Needed to see them?”
“Yeah. It’s just hard sometimes. I miss them still, especially around the holidays.”
Dean wrapped his arm around you. You leaned into his warmth, resting your head on his shoulder. You knew Dean understood what you meant. It wasn’t easy living the life of a hunter. Losing people you cared about happened far too often. It was worse when they were still alive though. Not being able to see them. Knowing they were hurt just as much when you left as you were leaving.
“I wish you weren’t dragged into this,” Dean admits.
“I don’t,” you turned to look at him. “I think it was meant to happen.”
“I still don’t like it. That you have to be without your family.”
“You guys are my family now. And it’s more than enough,” you promised.
Dean leant down and kissed you. It was a soft, slow kiss. Filled with understanding and comfort. The two of you only pulling away when the need for air became too important.
“I love you,” Dean whispered. “More than you know.”
You cupped his cheek, “I love you, too. And you never let me go without knowing just how loved I am.”