Simple Man

Amanda shot up from her bed and took deep breaths in as she tried to calm down from the dream she just had. She was having more and more dreams about Dean lately and she hated it; she just wanted to get him out of her head. Ever since she had released her one song on the radio and her parents were killed, all she did was dream about him. This dream was different, though; she performed in an arena, and Dean, Sam and Sasha were all there. She had saved Dean from getting arrested for Public Intoxication, and she had sex with Dean. It felt way too real. Also in this dream, her parents had died in a car accident. She wishes that was how they had died.

Realistically, her parents had been murdered; well, the feds told her they believed it was murder-suicide, but she didn’t believe it for a bit. Something killed her parents, and ever since that day she was on the hunt for whatever did kill them. She had contemplated many times calling the Winchesters and Sasha to see if they would be willing to help, but she wanted to do this on her own. And if she ever ran into them, well, she’d be in big trouble if they found out she was hunting on her own; and didn’t even call them.

Honestly, she wasn’t at all disappointed to give up her music career; it wasn’t everything she had hoped it would be. At first, she loved it; she played small venues and bars singing covers mostly. Then she was discovered by Frank; he was the one that led her toward her record deal; but it came with a price. He expected to be “re-paid” for everything he had done for her. He treated her like shit while she was expected to treat him like a king. She wasn’t going to dwell on it, though; she got out way easier than she thought she would. All she did was dye her hair and get some tattoos, and that was enough to scare Frank into the next world and he pretty much fired her.

It wasn’t easy for her to learn all the ways of hunting; she did a lot of online research and met up with different hunters; she had learned how to pick them out of a crowd. She wasn’t a perfect hunter, but she had become pretty damn good. She had killed a few demons; after, of course, interrogating them about her parents, but she couldn’t get a word out of any of them so far. Vampires were easy for her, as well, along with various other monsters, but none of them were the one she was looking for. She knew a demon had killed them; she found sulfur near the crime scene and she had remembered Dean telling her that was a sign a demon had been present. It got difficult sometimes, not having anyone around to help when she had questions about certain things; but that is why the internet was invented, for people like her who had nobody. She knew she could call Sasha anytime, but she wanted to do this on her own and didn’t want to get the three of them caught up in her problems. But that voice was in her head telling her how much deep shit she would be in if they ever found out.

Amanda sighed as she climbed out of bed and looked out the window of her condo in Nashville, thirty floors up in the sky. There were signs of demons in Ohio, so she figured she would head up that way today, wishing she could go around Kentucky all together, but that would take way too long. As she made her way to the bathroom she connected her phone to the Bluetooth stereo in her bedroom and decided on “Why Don’t You Get a Job?” by The Offspring. She looked at herself in the mirror long and hard; when she decided on a hair color, she went with a bright red, thinking it suit her well. She had a nose piercing now and tattoos all over her arms, shoulders and ribs. She was starting to like Amanda 2.0 more and more every day, but noticed she was way skinnier than she used to be. After all, she basically lived off of bourbon and cigarettes mostly now, and when she did eat, it wasn’t much; maybe a salad and a sandwich. She was worried that she was losing so much weight, but pushed it aside every time she thought about it. As she stood in the bathroom, she pulled out the scale and stood on it. When she released her single, she weighed about 180 pounds. Standing on it now, she brought her hand to her head in disappointment; she now weighed 149; this wasn’t healthy. With how tall she was, she shouldn’t weigh less than 160 to be considered healthy.

Amanda pushed that problem aside as well and started getting ready to leave. She Changed into a white crop top with no sleeves and black leggings, then slid on her brown boots, eating a Pop-Tart as she tied the laces. Once Amanda put her simple eyeliner and mascara on, she put her hair in a high, messy ponytail and put her black leather jacket on, then got her two duffel bags, phone and laptop, then made her way out the door. She put her headphones in, putting “Cool For The Summer” by Demi Lovato on and pressing the down arrow for the elevator. As the music played in her ears, she was seriously contemplating calling Dean; it had been six months since her parents were killed and she was getting nowhere. She knew they could help; and she missed all of them. The three weeks she spent with the three of them was the most fun she had had in her life. As they left, Amanda didn’t have his number, but when she had finally gone back up to her apartment in tears, she stuffed her hands in her pockets and felt a crumpled up piece of paper. She pulled it out and opened it, bringing her hand to her mouth; it was a short note from Dean.

Amanda,

If you’re reading this, you decided not to come with us, and that sucks…a lot. But I know you have things you need to do. Just know that we all care about you and if you ever need anything you know you can call me or Sasha and we’ll be here for you. I probably didn’t have the guts to say it before, but I’m going to say it now.

I love you, Amanda. Don’t forget about me.

Dean

Amanda replayed those words in her head, wishing she had heard it come from his mouth; she wanted to know what he sounded like, saying that to her. She loved him, too and she still did to this day.

As she climbed in her Range Rover, she turned the key in the ignition and “Sledgehammer” by Fifth Harmony blasted through her speakers and she slid her Ray Ban sunglasses on, nodding her head to the beat as she sped off out of the parking garage. The girl group had to be her guilty pleasure and she couldn’t help but belt the words as she merged onto the interstate, heading north on I-75. She lit a cigarette, tapping her fingers on the steering wheel. She still couldn’t decide if she wanted to call him, but she wanted to hear his voice so badly. She decided to say fuck it and picked up her phone, scrolling through her contacts and taking a deep breath as she hit the call button and turned down the volume on her stereo. After four rings, she heard his voice.

“Hello?” Oh that voice was a nice sound to her, and tears welled up in her eyes as she tried to get the courage to say something. “Is someone there?”

She took another hit off her cigarette, “Dean.”

It was nothing but silence for a minute and she knew he was either trying to figure out who was on the other end, or he was trying to find the words to say.

“Amanda?” Dean ran his free hand through his hair as his eyes started filling up with tears and looked over to Sasha and Sam, whose eyes went wide as he said her name. “Amanda, it’s so good to hear your voice.” Then he realized the note he left her, “Wait, are you okay, Amanda?” She couldn’t get her vocal chords to work and she silently cursed herself for calling him. “Say something, Manda.”

She smiled lightly at the nickname he had given her about a week before he left, “Dean, I’m okay. I am. But I need your help.” As she looked out her window, she noticed a car keeping the same pace with her; she couldn’t see inside the windows because they were tinted, “But I think I need to explain everything in person. I’m being watched at this very moment…by demons I think.”

“What?!” He exclaimed, pacing around the motel room. “Amanda don’t pull over, head straight to us. Where are you?”

“I’m on I-75 heading toward Ohio; there were signs of demons there,” Dean was extremely confused. “I know, you have no idea what’s going on and I promise I will explain everything when I get to you. Where are you all?”

He sighed as Sasha and Dean were left in the dark, eagerly awaiting an explanation from Dean. “We’re in Illinois; I’ll text you the address. It’s a motel called The Lampshade; I know, stupid name. Just, call me every hour or two and let me know you’re still okay; how many of them are there?”

Amanda looked out the window again and over to the Mustang next to her, “The windows are tinted. But I can faintly see their heads turned toward me; at least three of them.”

“Jesus, Amanda, what did you do to piss demons off?” He shook his head. “I thought you were touring around the country playing music and now you’re telling me you’ve got demons on your ass?”

Amanda sighed, “Dean we’re finally talking after a year, can we please not fight again? I told you I’ll explain everything.” She smiled lightly, “I’m gonna hang up now. I just left Nashville so it shouldn’t be too long. What town are you in?”

“Kennett,” Dean said sternly. “Promise me you won’t stop for any reason. You aren’t sleepy are you?”

“No, I think I can handle a three-and-a-half-hour drive, Dean,” Amanda sighed and flicked her cigarette out the window. “Hey.”

Dean smiled lightly, “Yeah.”

“When you see me for the first time in a year, Dean. Please don’t judge me; I don’t exactly look like I used to,” Amanda said nervously. Then she hung up the phone and sped off, getting off the interstate and making her way west; she decided to not take the interstate; and it looked like the demons were off her trail for now.

Dean paced around the motel room, running his hands through his hair. He couldn’t believe what was happening; he had already explained what he knew to Sam and Sasha and had already put a devil’s trap at the door in case she was a demon. He wanted to trust her but it was strange for her to suddenly call him after a year. He was angry that she somehow had gotten herself involved with demons; after he left, he had thought about it for a while and he loved her too much to bring her into his world. He wanted her to have a normal life; well, a life that didn’t involve demons or other monsters.

“Dammit,” He muttered, looking over to same. “You don’t think she’s been hunting, do you?”

Sam shrugged, “I wouldn’t think so. You would think that if she started that up she would’ve called us a hell of a lot sooner, right?”

Dean nodded, “Yeah.” He smiled lightly, “Yeah, I guess you’re right. But she said she would explain why she’s got demons on her ass when she got here, so I’m guessing she’s been going solo, and I don’t mean her music career.”

Sam sighed, “Well, then, we’ll find out when she gets here.”

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

“Or we’ll find out now,” Dean said, walking toward the door; he took a deep breath in, then opened it, revealing a tall, redhead with tattoos and piercings; not the Amanda he remembered. “Well, you look different.” He wasn’t sure about her yet; something was off. He moved aside so she could come in and when she walked right over the devil’s trap he breathed a sigh of relief.

“Hi to you, too,” Amanda lowered her head and dropped her duffel bags, then turned to Sam and Sasha. “Hey guys,” She smiled weakly, but this wasn’t the warm welcome she was expecting.

“Amanda,” Dean almost growled at her, “What have you been doing for the past year?”

She sighed and opened her duffel bag, getting her bottle of bourbon out; she refilled her flask and took a swig out of it, earning confused looks from all three. She rolled her eyes and sat down on the motel bed. “Okay, here goes,” She took a deep breath. She was nervous; and when she got nervous, she couldn’t shut up, so she was betting that she would tell them way more than she wanted to. “I did move to Nashville after I graduated. My parents were angry at first, but then when I released the single they were actually really proud of me; happy, almost. So everything was going great; before I was playing at bars and going to different studios begging them to listen to me. Then Frank came along and he led me to the right people and he got my career started; I was set up for a tour and was going to make an album, but then he started wanting me to “re-pay” him for all he had done for me,” She took a breath and another swig out of her flask. Dean didn’t look happy. “So I started having doubts then, but I kept going; I really wanted to do it, you know?” Dean’s eyes went wide and she chuckled, “Don’t worry, I didn’t sleep with him. I never went there; I just kept avoiding him, mainly. Then…right before tour was about to start, I got a phone call.” Then she lit a cigarette; Sam was about to protest and tell her to put it out, but Sasha smacked him lightly, telling him to stop. “It was the Kentucky State Police, and they told me my parents died,” Everyone’s eyes went wide and Amanda’s eyes filled with tears; it still hurt her to talk about it. “The feds kept saying they believe it was murder-suicide, but I wasn’t buying it. So I did a little investigating at the crime scene and found sulfur.” Dean lowered his head. “So I knew it was a demon and I was so angry and fed up with the music business that I tried to get out, but they wouldn’t let me out of my contract. It was like I was a prisoner,” She took a hit of her cigarette and stood up, starting to pace.

“So how did you get out?” Sam asked with concern.

Amanda gestured to her body and laughed lightly, “You know country singers aren’t usually supposed to look like this. Let’s just say they wanted to part ways after I went to the dark side.” Dean laughed and put his hands on his hips. “So, after that I stayed in Nashville but used the money I had gotten from the couple of songs I did and bought a condo, then set up shop to find the demon that killed my parents. I’ve been all over the east coast catching demons and questioning them, torturing them, but I can’t get a peep out of any of them.” She paused and looked at Dean with sorrow in her eyes. “That’s part of the reason I called.” Then she looked down at her feet, “The other part of me wanted to see you all so badly; I have no one now. You all are my best friends; I couldn’t spend another day without the three of you. Especially you, Sasha.”

Sasha looked up at Amanda and gave her a weak smile, “I missed you, too, Amanda. But why didn’t you call us sooner? We could have helped you catch this asshole of a demon by now.”

Sam and Dean nodded, agreeing with her and Amanda sighed, “I know I should have. But I didn’t want you all involved with my problems.”

Dean coughed, “Well, you know, demons are kind of our problem. You know that, right?” He gave her a sarcastic smile and Amanda shrugged. “Listen; all is forgiven. But don’t you dare disappear again, okay?” Amanda nodded and looked down at her feet in guilt. “You look like you need a triple burger with cheese and bacon,” Dean looked her up and down with worry.

“I told you not to judge me,” Amanda rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest. “But I’m pretty hungry. Should we all go?”

Sasha and Sam looked at each other, then to Amanda, “We already ate about an hour ago,” Sasha gave a weak smile. “But Dean hasn’t eaten,” She winked at Dean who glared at her slightly. “But we’ll catch up when you get back. You all probably have some things to talk about.”

“Way to be subtle, Sasha,” Amanda rolled her eyes and started making her way to the door. Once they were outside, she stuffed her hands in her pocket and looked up to Dean, “So, who’s driving?”

Dean smiled and pointed in front of them, “There’s a diner just a little bit up that way. We could just walk.”

She nodded and cringed at the silence; so she decided to bite the bullet, “Listen, Dean,” He cut her off.

“Amanda, you don’t have to say anything. I understand,” He said quietly, not making eye contact. He was resisting the urge to grab her and kiss her right there, but he knew that wouldn’t be right. They need to talk some things out first. He opted, instead, to pull her into a tight hug. She was caught off guard and kind of fell into him, but relaxed when he wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on her head and putting his hand on the back of her head, running his fingers through her hair. They stayed like that for a minute, while Amanda silently let some tears fall. “I missed you so much.”

She couldn’t say anything at first, just taking in his scent that she missed so much. She suddenly got a huge wave of exhaustion and looked up at him, “I’m not hungry anymore,” She said quietly, wiping the tears from her face. “I just got extremely tired.”

Dean pouted at her and guided her back to the motel, looking at his feet as he walked. He was worried about her, that was for sure. “Listen, you can have the bed. I’ll sleep on the couch tonight; you need some rest,” He said as he got the motel key out.

Amanda smiled lightly and shook her head, “Dean, you can sleep with me,” She said and immediately regretted it. Dean laughed while Amanda rolled her eyes, “Don’t start that. You know what I meant.” As they walked into the room, Sasha and Dean were asleep already, snuggled up against each other; Amanda smiled. She was happy for Sasha. “I’m gonna change and brush my teeth real quick,” Dean nodded and sighed as he watched her walk toward the bathroom. He was already falling head over heels again. He wasn’t used to this new look she had; but he was not complaining one bit. He could help but stare her up and down as she walked. His breath caught in his throat even more when she emerged in boxer shorts and a tank top. This wasn’t fair, he thought. She needed to put more clothes on, but he tried to ignore it. Her long legs were intoxicating, and the way her red hair fell lightly over her breasts in soft curls made him want to skip the talking altogether. “What’s wrong?” She pouted and Dean couldn’t imagine the look he was giving her. He probably looked constipated. He shrugged and changed into basketball shorts, hoping that in the bed it would hide the evidence. For a few minutes, Amanda laid there looking at Dean, trying to study him. “Thanks for not hating me, Dean.”

Dean brought her into him again, kissing the top of her head, “I could never hate you,” After a moment, he started rubbing her back lightly with the tips of his fingers, “Goodnight, Manda.”

She smiled wide, nuzzling her head into his chest, “Goodnight, Dean.”