gonna make you sweat, gonna make you groove

Callie frowned. "Dean only does what he does because he thinks he knows what's best for you, Sam." She said quietly. She wasn't saying that Dean was right, but she did know just how much he cared about Sam. From what Sam had told her, Dean was more so the one who had raised him than their father. He was a damn good older brother, and Callie sort of wished she had someone out there to look out for her the way that Dean did Sam. "He also never finished high school or went off to college. You two are two completely different people. What works for you doesn't necessarily work for him and vice-versa. Maybe you should try talking to him about it?"

---

"I think there are some exaggerations with everything that's out there." Dean told her. Sam always did most of the research, and he always seemed to find the accurate stuff. Dean sometimes wondered how he managed to do that, but he figured it must have been something he learned in college, and he'd rather not have his brother go off on a tangent about spending hours in the library studying his law books. "It does. Devil's traps work, so does holy water. Most of what you've read is probably right. Same goes for making deals with crossroads demons..."

"I've tried," Sam mumbled. "It always ends up in a ridiculous argument and it makes the next couple days around him absolutely unbearable." Of course it didn't help that anytime it got brought up on or both of them was already upset or annoyed about something else completely. It was honestly one of those topics that was hard to bring up and when it was it was always at the wrong time and left everyone involved pissed off and needing a good strong drink to cool off.

---

"Would you ever do that," Melody asked. "If you were in a situation you had no other option? Would you make a deal with a crossroads demon?" Melody knew if it was a life or death situation with Callie and only a deal with a demon could save the blonde she wouldn't hesitate to make the deal. "I think I would," she admitted. "If Callie was dying and it was the only option I knew would work."

"Maybe you need to go about it differently?" Callie offered. She was trying to help her, but she did remember how Dean had been when they were younger. She was certain that he was just as set in his ways now as he had appeared to be back then. She was certain that it must be awkward and tense traveling with someone you'd just argued with. She knew that she and Melody sometimes got into tiffs here and there, and things were a little tense for a while. Being that they were brothers, she was certain that the arguments got much worse between Sam and Dean, even if she did see Melody as a sister.

---

"I already have." Dean told her, taking another sip of his drink, this one a bit longer than the previous ones. "Sam was dead. I didn't know what else to do, so I made a deal. Sam's life for mine. I have less than a year." He felt as though it really hit him this time around when he told Melody than it ever had before. Sure, it was always there lurking in the back of his mind, that he was going to die soon and go to hell, and there was nothing he could do to change that fact.

"I'm almost scared to bring it up anymore," Sam admitted. "Dean has less than a year left and I don't want the last thing I say to him to be said in anger." It was true there was so much the younger Winchester wanted to get off his chest; to just lay everything out on the table so nothing was a secret anymore but that's not how he wanted things to be with Dean. He didn't want the rest of Dean's time before being dragged to hell to be nothing but fighting.

---

"Have anything on your bucket list you still need to do," Melody asked. "I could help you mark of doing a redhead if you still need that," she joked. Melody honestly didn't know how to really react to what Dean had said. She knew that deep down if anythig were to happen to Callie she'd probably be in Dean's shoes. It honestly scared the crap out of her.

Callie's eyebrows furrowed slightly in confusion when Sam mentioned Dean only having a year left. The eldest Winchester's deal with a crossroads demon had yet to come up in their conversation, so this was news to her. "What do you meant he only has a year left?" She asked, frowning slightly. She had a feeling that she knew the answer to her own question though. If they knew how much time Dean had left, and were certain about, realistically there was only one answer to that question. That didn't mean that she wanted to hear it though.

---

Dean chuckled slightly at her words, though it was almost forced. It really was starting to sink in just how little time he had left. He'd been making it out to be a joke for a while now, his way of coping with the inevitable, but it was hard to keep at that when it was constantly looming over him. "I might just take you up on that offer." He joked. He was kind of glad that she hadn't reacted how he was certain most people would. She wasn't looking at him with any form of pity, and that was something he was extremely thankful for.

"Before we got yellow eyes a few things happened," Sam mumbled. "We were finding out a few things about some other people he had messed with and I died." He visibly swallowed, still upset about Dean giving up his life for Sam's. "So Dean found a way to bring me back," he stated. "Used a crossroads demon and now he has about six months left unless we find a way to stop it from happening."

---

Melody noticed the look on Dean's face and his eyes changed, looking darker and less vibrant then they had minutes before. "It's finally sinking in," she mumbled. It was both a question and a statement from the redhead, she could tell it was. She poured him another glass of whiskey and sat back down next to him. "Do you guys have a plan on how to fight it?"

"And you haven't found a way to stop it from happening..." Callie said, frowning slightly. She really wasn't at all surprised by what Sam had told her. Dean was an amazing older brother, and as much as he and Sam fought, she knew that he'd do anything for him. And vice-versa really. It didn't surprise her that he'd trade his soul just to bring Sam back. "You boys never could stay out of trouble..."

---

Dean nodded wordlessly. She was right, and he saw no reason to deny what she'd just said. It all really was starting to sink in. Maybe he was sort of pushing all of this to the back of his mind when Sam was around. He put up this front that he was all carefree about dying soon when he really wasn't. He took a long sip before shaking his head. "We have bupkis." He told her honestly.

Sam shook his head. "So far we have no leads," he stated. It was really tearing him up inside. He blamed himself for what Dean was now dealing with. He knew it had been his brother's own choice to make the deal with the crossroad's demon but it was obvious to anyone who knew about the situation Sam blamed it all on himself. "I wish he hadn't made that deal," Sam admitted. "Because now if we can't find a way to stop it I'll be stuck alone with the guilt of what he'll be stuck with for the rest of eternity."

---

Melody watched Dean nod and noticed his eyes go completely blank. What little vibrancy he had in his eyes was now completely gone. "Maybe Callie and I can help," she offered. "Four sets of eyes can be better than two." She knew if Callie knew the blonde wouldn't hesitate to offer up her help and the redhead knew just how much the Winchesters meant to her friend.

Callie frowned at his words. She knew that Sam blamed himself for what happened. And if they didn't find a way to save Dean, well that guilt would just become all the more intense. "Don't say that." She said, shaking her head when he said that he wished his brother hadn't made the deal. "Don't say that because I know you would have done the same exact thing if the roles were reversed." She knew the Winchester boys. She knew that they'd do anything for each other. Even if that meant selling their souls. "We're going to figure this all out, alright?"

---

"You don't have to do that." Dean said, shaking his head. As much as he appreciated the offer, he didn't want anyone else dragged into this mess. He knew that was likely easier said than done though. When Callie learned of what was going on, he knew that she'd insist on helping, and if Callie was going to help, Melody would too. He had a feeling that he wouldn't have a say in any of this at all.

Sam sighed softly, nodding because he knew Callie was right. She always was. The blonde had proved him wrong more times than he could count on his fingers and toes when they had all spent the summer together. "I don't know what we can do," Sam admitted. "We've done everything I could possibly think of and read more than even that."

---

"We both know if Sam tells Callie you're stuck with us," Melody stated. "So I promise to stock us up on a bunch of whiskey and greasy burgers so it makes things tolerable." She took a swig of her glass of whiskey, finishing it off before she added more to her glass.

"Well, maybe you just need some help so you boys aren't doing it all on your own?" Callie offered. Now that she knew fully what was going on, there was no way in hell that she wasn't helping. Dean was like an older brother to that summer, and Sam was, well, he was Sam, and she'd be damned if she didn't help these two out when they were going through all of this. "And I'm not taking no for an answer, so don't even bother trying to talk me out of this." She added with a small smile.

---

Dean sighed running a hand through his hair. "You're right." He said with a nod. If Sam told Callie what was going on, there was no way that the blonde was going to let them do this on their own, and it seemed that Callie and Melody were kind of a package deal, so she'd be tagging along as well. He let out a soft chuckle at her later words. "You had me at whiskey and greasy burgers." He said, mustering up a small smile.

"Your friend, Melody," Sam mumbled. "How good is at research?" Callie was right, maybe they needed another couple sets of eyes to help. Sam was tired and pushing himself harder than he normally did and he knew Dean was the same way lately and his older brother probably got less sleep than he did.

---

Melody let out a small laugh, smiling as she looked over at Dean. "That's probably one thing we will have in common," she mumbled. "I'm the funny one too." She pressed her lips to the end of her tumblr and took a bigger drink of the whiskey.

"Good might be an understatement." Callie told him. There was a reason why Callie left most of the research to her red haired friend. Melody was always extremely thorough with her research. She almost always thought of just about everything. "I'm sure she'd be willing to help." She and Melody were sort of a packaged deal now. They'd been hunting together for a number of years now. And if Callie planned on staying with the Winchesters, so would Melody.

---

Dean let out a soft chuckle. "I guess you're right." He said, sipping his drink. "I'm the funnier one though." A small smirk tugged at the corners of his lips. He had a feeling that he was going to enjoy having Melody around. Of course, maybe the circumstances could have been better, but the deal had been made, and there was nothing he could do about it unless they found a way for him to get out of it. If they didn't, he supposed that the hell hounds would come for him six months down the line.

"She's that thorough," Sam questioned. "That's definitely something we need. I don't think I can handle pretending Dean is running out of time anymore." It was honestly more draining for Sam to try to pretend than he thought it would. He had to stop himself from saying certain things so many times. Sam was honestly tired of walking in eggshells around him.

---

"Guess that makes your brother the pretty one," Melody joked. She leaned back on the couch, getting comfy as she drank a little more of her glass of whiskey. "What is your brother's secret to such long flowing hair?"

Callie nodded. "She's one of the most thorough people that I know." She told him. And that wasn't her exaggerating or anything either. Melody was good at what she did. "There's a reason why I normally leave most of the research up to her." She frowned slightly in response to his later words but nodded. "You two aren't going to have to do this alone anymore. Melody and I are going to help figure all of this out."

---

Dean chuckled slightly at her words. "I think that's open to interpretation." He countered, sipping his whiskey. He shook his head in response to her later words, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "I'm pretty sure that's a question for Sam, not me. I don't know his hair secrets." He chuckled once more.

Sam nodded, hoping Callie was right. If Melody could save his brother from hell hounds he would be forever grateful to her. He was sure Dean would be too even if he didn't say it. "I'm trying to say hopeful," he admitted. "Maybe this is what I needed to stay that way.

---

Melody smiled, happy that Dean was smiling and laughing at her jokes. She knew he needed help keeping his mind off of things. If she couldn't help save Dean maybe she could help make the rest of his year a good one.

Callie reached across the table and took his hand in hers, giving it a gentle squeeze. "That's all you can really do right now." She told him. She knew that this was all really tough on him, and with good reason too, but it wouldn't do him any good to lose hope. "You need to stay hopeful, even when shit really hits the fan. Being pessimistic never really gets anyone very far at all."

---

Dean sent a small smile her way before taking another sip of his drink. "Those two have been gone for a while." He commented, noting that Sam and Callie still hadn't shown up at the room. He really wasn't all that surprised though, if he was being completely honest, they had a lot to catch up on.

Sam nodded. As usual Callie was right. He needed to stay positive and hopeful or Dean would probably start getting even more pessimistic about his situation than he already was. At least one of the Winchester's needed to hope that they would save Dean from hell and he doubted his brother would be that one.

---

"Do you think they're still catching up or do you think they're having some horizontal hokey pokey," Melody joked. She really didn't want to imagine Callie having a sex since she was practically like a sister but Sam was definitely easy on the eyes. The redhead was definitely overdue for some action between the sheets.

"Melody and I will do whatever we can to help." Callie assured him. She knew that things obviously weren't looking great, she only hoped that things would start looking up soon enough. She hoped that they'd find a way to save Dean from his current fate. There had to be something they could do. There just had to be a way around the deal. She didn't know what it was, but there just had to be something.

---

Dean chuckled softly in response to her words. "If they are, I don't want to think about it. Callie's always been like a little sister to me, so thinking about her having sex with my brother?" He made a face, and shook his head before chuckling once more. Not that he was against that happening between Sam and Callie. The blonde had been good for his brother years back, and he was certain that would hold true now. If things didn't work out, and there was no way to get Dean out of his deal, he just wanted to go out knowing that Sam had someone who made him happy and that there was someone to be there for him when it all went down.

Sam gave Callie a small sad looking smile. The blonde had him feeling hopeful about the situation again but it was only a small bit of hope. Sam was honestly mentally preparing himself for losing his brother. "I really hope Callie and you can really help."

---

"Honestly thinking about Callie having sex is weird but since I don't know your brother that part isn't bad," Melody replied. She moved onto the bed she had claimed as hers and plopped down on it, her back flat against the mattress before she propped herself up on her elbows. "So what is your type," she wondered. "Tall and mysterious with big boobs?"