"Lacey!" John Winchester's voice boomed through the dark night. "Dean! Get off her!" John's forehead was creased as he ran towards the spot a drunken Dean and a delicate Lacey were roughhousing.
"Dean, you heard your dad. Off." Lacey Andrews giggled as she tried to push Dean's brawny 20-year-old body off of her thin 16-year-old one. They had been sitting on the grass, talking, when Dean had tackled her to the ground and started tickling her.
"Aww, all right." Dean pouted as he climbed off her. He got up and brushed the dirt off his pants before heading back to the cabin they were currently staying in.
Lacey felt a bit lightheaded. Ever since her tumor had miraculously disappeared entirely, she had the occasional episode in which she felt lightheaded or didn't know who anyone was. Including herself. This was one of those times. She scrambled to her feet, the heels of her boots digging into the dirt as she pulled her coffee brown hair back into a ponytail.
"Lace, you okay?" John asked as he walked up to the girl he considered his daughter. Lacey's parents had been old friends of his, but they died shortly after her birth in a car accident.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay." Lacey smiled weakly as she spoke. Her purple camisole was grass and dirt stained, and her chest rose and fell rapidly as she breathed.
"Okay. Well, get inside. It's almost 1 in the morning." John scolded as he jerked his thumb towards the doorway.
Lacey nodded and headed inside, only to be tackled to the bed by Dean once she stepped in the door. A burst of laughter bubbled from her lips and Dean smirked as he pinned her down.
"Dean. Go to bed. Your bed." John stated strictly.
Dean mumbled a few profanities under his breath and trudged over to bed, falling asleep once his head hit the pillow.
"Are you sure I'm related to him?" 16-year-old Sam joked with a smile from his bed.
"I wonder the same thing myself sometimes, Sammy." John chuckled warmly.
"Night guys." Lacey smiled as she shook her head. She covered up with the comforter that lay on the bed and fell into an uneasy sleep, as always.
***
"Dean, slow down!" the now 24-year-old Lacey shrieked from the passenger's seat.
Dean's foot eased up on the gas pedal a bit, but his grip tightened on the steering wheel. He glanced back at the two men in the backseat and pursed his lips. One was his little brother, whom he loved dearly. The other was the man he loved to hate with every fiber of his being.
Jake Harper. Lacey's boyfriend. The man he had let join them on the road, in hopes of showing Lacey he could open up more. Boy, did that not work out the way he had planned. Jake became infatuated with Lacey, and Lacey adored him to bits. Their love was sickening, actually. All the lovey dovey, kiss kiss crap made Dean want to shoot himself in the head with his own gun.
"Keep your pants on. I want to get there before sundown." Dean's gruff voice retorted, his lips still pursed together tightly.
He and Lacey exchanged a few sideways glances, too many for Jake's liking.
"What're you two looking at that's so fascinating?" Jake asked curiously, his eyebrow perked.
Lacey simply shrugged as she turned her attention to look out the window.
Dean's fists balled around the steering wheel tighter from just hearing Jake's voice.
Sam stifled a chuckle and rolled his eyes.
"What're you laughing at?" Jake shot at him.
"How naive you are." Sam smiled with fake enthusiasm.
"What?" Jake inquired, his brows knit together.
"I rest my case." Sam laughed as Dean drove off into the sunset.
***
"Hey, Dean! Sam! You two want any ice cream?" Lacey called out as she pulled her black fleece jacket on. She zipped it up and pulled her hair up in a chignon. Jake stood outside the door, his hands in his pockets as he waited for her to come out.
"Vanilla for me." Sam replied with a smile, before going back to the research he had been looking at.
"Nothing for me." Dean grumbled from his spot on his bed. He continued sharpening his machete, glancing at the door every so often.
"Dean Winchester turning down ice cream? Boy, you feeling okay?" Lacey teased with a smile.
Dean sneered at her and tossed his blade aside.
"See ya, Sam. Dipshit." Lacey smiled sweetly before turning and walking out the door.
"You ever gonna tell her how you feel?" Sam asked his brother, annoyed.
"I will eventually." Dean shot back as he got up and went to grab his jacket. He slid the brown leather jacket on over his shoulders and grabbed his car keys. "I'm going for a ride."
"Have fun with that." Sam replied, giving him an uninterested thumbs-up as he continued researching their current case.
Dean made his way toward the door and walked out, pulling it shut in a slam behind him. His forehead creased as raindrops fell down upon him in bucketfuls. He tugged the collar of his jacket up more and headed for the Impala, his gaze focused on his feet. He looked up finally at the sound of someone squealing and giggling and rage formed in his eyes as he saw Jake and Lacey kissing.
Jake picked her up and laid her back on the hood of his car, kissing her deeply as he hovered over her.
As his nostrils flared and his eyes flashed, he climbed into his Impala and zoomed off down the highway.
***
"So how's your ice cream, Lace?" Jake smiled as the soaking wet couple walked down the cobblestone street.
"Cold." Lacey giggled as she finished her cone.
"Come on, silly. Let's dance." Jake chuckled as he twirled her out into the street to the sound of the music playing over the loudspeaker outside of the Italian restaurant behind them.
Lacey laughed and pulled him out into the street. The two began to dance together and she sighed happily as the song ended.
"Lace?" Jake asked timidly.
"Hmm?" she asked as she looked up at him.
"I-"
"Jake, look out!" Lacey interrupted as she saw the glare of a car's headlights zooming towards them. She shoved him out of the way and felt the weight of the car come crashing down upon her as she was sent flying backwards.
***
"Jake!" Sam and Dean yelled out as they rushed through the hospital's waiting room.
Jake's head snapped up as tears continued sliding down his face. "Sam. Dean." he managed to croak out.
"How is she?" Dean asked as he screeched to a halt.
"The doctors...They don't think she'll make it." Jake sobbed.
"Jake, I'm so sorry." Sam said softly.
"What room is she in?" Dean spoke quickly, a million thoughts running through his mind.
"Uh, 84D. It's just down the hall." Jake answered.
Without another word, Dean was off.
***
He gently pushed her room door open and his heart tore as he saw the condition she was in. "Lace..." Dean spoke hoarsely. He took a seat at her bedside and took her fragile hand in his. He ran his fingertips along the back of her palm and tears started pouring from his eyes.
"God, Lacey, don't leave me. I need you, Lacey. I never thought I'd say this, but I love you, Lacey. You're my world. You're my everything." Dean sobbed out quietly as he held her delicate hand to his lips.
Remembering the small locket he always kept in his coat pocket for her, he took it out and carefully laid it in her palm. As he wrapped her pallid fingers around the heart shaped pendant, his chest heaved violently from holding back sobs. Dean brought her hand back up to his lips temporarily, before leaning over and wrapping his arms around her. He buried his face in her shoulder and continued to cry, hoping she'd wake up from her current state.
***
Dean left the hospital an hour later and headed off to Bobby's. He pulled the Impala into the junk lot and slid under the car, examining the parts underneath.
After finding nothing wrong with the car, he was going to head inside to talk to Bobby. But then memories struck him.
"Dean Winchester, I'm gonna marry you someday."
"God, Dean! You make me sick!"
"Dean, you're so cute, you know that?"
All of the statements had been said by Lacey in jest, but all three hit home with him. His heart ached as he grabbed a claw hammer, and in one fell swoop he let the hammer collide with the window of a nearby car.
As his breathing became labored, the memory of watching Jake and Lacey kiss in the rain hit him. Gaining a second wind, he began to take his frustration out on his own car, until tears began to stream down his grease stained face.
***
Days passed and Sam's worry for his best friend's health went off the charts. He walked into Lacey's room and his heart skipped a beat as he saw her warm chocolate brown eyes open and looking over at him.
"Hey, Sammy." Lacey spoke quietly, a soft smile on her lips.
"Lacey." Sam breathed as he hurried to her side.
She struggled to sit up more and winced as she motioned to her coat. "Give me my coat."
Sam nodded and grabbed her fleece coat. He gently laid it in her arms and sat down.
Lacey dug around in the inside pocket of her coat and winced as she pulled out a ripped envelope. "Here. Give this to Dean if I...Y'know." she stated hoarsely as she handed the envelope to Sam.
"You're not gonna-"
"Please, Sam. I'm begging you. As my best friend. Do this for me?" Lacey begged.
Sam sighed and nodded. "Okay. I will."
"Thank you." she said softly. "Now I think I need to rest."
He nodded his head and sat back more as he watched her drift off to sleep before him, her chest rising and falling slowly.
***
Sam had gone and told Dean and Jake that Lacey woke up, and they both demanded to see her.
Rushing into her room, Jake was overcome with emotion as he saw Lacey staring over at him blankly. Her eyes were glassy and her cheeks were tear stained. Her hand was balled into a fist around the edge of her bed, as if she had been struggling with a great pain. And it's then Jake realized his worse nightmare had come true.
"Lacey!" Jake and Dean both yelled out.
No reply.
Doctors flooded into the room, trying to revive her, but their efforts were to no avail.
"Time of death?" one doctor spoke.
"No." the three broken men choked out as they saw her lifeless body lying there.
Lacey Andrews may not have thought she was that important, but her passing would change this trio forever.
***
Sam gave Dean Lacey's letter the following day and he read it.
Over and over, he read it.
And he would never forget what it said.
Dear Dean,
You act like you think I'm perfect.
But I'm not.
I'm far from it.
To quote a favorite song of mine;
One thing is clear
I wear a halo
I wear a halo when you look at me
It goes on from there, but my point is, I'm not perfect Dean.
I never was.
And now that I'm gone, I never will be.
But one thing about me that will never change is my unwavering devotion to you.
I love you, Dean Winchester.
I doubt that you ever felt the same, but I needed to tell you.
And now you know.
Love always,
Lacey Andrews
But Lacey was wrong.
Dean did feel the same.
And now that she was gone, a part of his heart was gone as well.
---------
