Running. Hiding. There was nothing else to do but keep moving. Away from the vamps. Away from the werewolves. Away from every fanged and slimy and crawling monster. Away from the Leviathans. But they always found him. Time and time again.
He fought them until he dropped to his knees, shaking from the adrenaline that coursed through him. Then Benny would pick him up and yell at him to move his ass. And it would start all over again.
Cas... Where was Cas? The bastard just up and left him again! Oh no, wait, there he was, still wearing that stupid trench coat too. He had to keep an eye on him. He couldn't let him wander off again. They had to stick together. They had to get home. People were waiting for them. Bobby... no, not Bobby - he was dead. Sam... Kevin... Allegra...
He felt her - her comforting touch. She was waiting for him, he knew it. She was calling out to him.

"Dean?"

God, her sweet voice... He heard it as if she were standing right next to her. He saw the shape of her - a beautiful red-haired angel with radiant golden wings.

"Dean, wake up."

He screamed, but not a sound came out of his throat. He ran harder, faster, trying to reach her. But she fell away. Another monster. Another Leviathan. Fighting again. Keep fighting, don't give up; that's what he told himself. Get out, get home, and get to her.
Allegra... Her warmth surrounded him. It kept him safe. Kept him sane. No more fighting the monsters and Leviathans. No more running through this goddamn endless forest. No Benny. No Castiel. Just Allegra.

"Dean, I'm here. Ssh, it's okay. I'm here."

A gentle caress at his brow. Soft lips brushed against his cheek. That warmth... He knew that warmth. It was... It was...

Dean's eyes opened with a start. He turned his head to see Allegra hovering over him. She drew back when he sat up with a jolt.

"Easy, easy." She put her hands on his shoulders to steady him. "Deep breaths."

It took a moment for Dean to remember he was in the (guest)bedroom in the house Allegra grew up in. The light on her nightstand was on. His heartbeat slowed as he remembered that he was safe, in a warm bed, with the woman he loved. So why had she...? Dean looked back over his shoulder and frowned at her in confusion.

"W-Why were you using your shield on me?"

"You were talking in your sleep. Something about monsters and Leviathans? You were calling out for Castiel as well."

Dean grunted in annoyance.

"For God's sake, it was a just nightmare. You don't have to use your shield on me for every bad dream I have. I'm not that fragile."

"I never said you were," said Allegra, raising her brow at his reaction. "But it sounded like a memory from Purgatory, and I...'

"Same difference! I'm a big boy, Allegra; I can handle a couple of memories and dreams. I don't need you mothering me!"

He shrugged her hands away and threw the cover off, stalking away to the open window. It was still dark out. The moon was high up in the sky, surrounded by thousands of stars, sparkling like diamonds. A soft breeze prickled Dean's skin. He took a deep breath to calm himself. The nightmare was over. But the memories were still there. And they were all too real. It was just like... like after he returned from Hell. And... Allegra had helped him then too.

Goddammit... Way to go, Winchester.

Dean turned around to face her, but she was lying on her side, away from him. He sighed, cursing himself again for being an idiot, and walked back to the bed to crawl in beside her. He slipped his arm around her waist as he pressed his body against hers.

"I was only trying to help you," she whispered.

"I know," he said. "I know you were. It's just... You gotta let me process this on my own. No more shield, okay?"

Allegra nodded but kept quiet. Dean nudged her gently. When they were face to face, he raised her chin. Their eyes met.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lashed out like that."

"It's okay."

"No, it's not. Can you forgive me? Please?"

Allegra answered his plea by pushing herself up to reach his mouth. Dean welcomed her lips to his, thanking her silently for forgiving his stupid ass yet again. They didn't leave each other's embrace for the rest of the night and eventually fell asleep to the nice steady rhythm of their hearts beating as one. It was all better now. Everything was going to be all right.

***

Everything was not all right. Not by a long shot. And there wasn't a damn thing Allegra could do about it except watch Dean struggle through it. Damn those Winchesters and their stubbornness! It would have been so easy to help out, but Dean just wouldn't let her!
Not a night had gone by these past two weeks that he hadn't woken up with a racing heart and his body drenched in sweat. Allegra would lie quietly by his side, wide awake, until the nightmare began. Then, she would talk to him, making sure he knew he was safe and home with her. And when he finally woke up, eyes wide and fighting for breath, she would pull him close and keep his head on her bosom so that her own calm heart would quiet him down. Dean would hold her body tightly, terrified that she wasn't real and he was still in Purgatory. But when she stroked his hair and sang Hey Jude, he would slowly drift back into sleep. Then, and only then, did Allegra allow herself to sleep, as well.

The fatigue held them both in its grasp. And if there had been a case somewhere to keep them occupied, then perhaps it wouldn't have mattered that much. 'Cause then, they would have been able to shift their focus. But as it was, the entire supernatural community apparently decided to take a break. Typical...
So, when Valentine came up, Allegra was happy that they were leaving for a while. Out of the house, out of town, out of state, even. Mrs. Robinson - bless her - gave them tickets for The Phantom of the Opera in Manhattan (Dean had only remembered to give Allegra the envelope the day after their turbulent birthday). And when Dean admitted to never having been to Central Park, much less to have seen a musical on Broadway, Allegra thought it the perfect opportunity for their first trip as a couple. And perhaps... for something else, too.
But first things first, she had to remind Dean where they were going and what they were going to do there without him making a complete soap drama of it afterward. Fortunately, she knew just how to handle it.

***

Dean sighed in frustration. He had scoured the newspaper twice now, and still nothing! What, were all the demons and monsters on a winter retreat or something? There had to be a case somewhere! And what was up with the friggin' piano music?!
He pushed himself away from the kitchen table and walked out to the living room. As soon as he saw Allegra seated at the instrument, he froze and watched her. The light from the open window played with her red hair as she played with the keys. It was the first time since they'd been living together that Dean actually saw her play one of her instruments. It was... kind of beautiful.
He moved closer. Allegra glanced up when she heard him coming and stopped.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Is this bothering you?" she asked.

"No!" Dean said quickly. "No, not at all. I just... I've never heard you play before."

"Yeah, I probably should play a bit more, though. I'm a little rusty."

"That was rusty?"

Allegra lowered her gaze and smiled shyly at the compliment. Dean came over to sit beside her. He let his fingers glide over the keys. A very vague memory came to mind of his mother playing a song for him on the piano. He never bothered to learn any instrument himself, but if he had... and if Mary Winchester had lived... maybe it would've been piano too. 

"When did you learn?"

"I was... 6 years old, I think," responded Allegra pensively.

"Did ah... Did he teach you?"

Even without saying the bastard's name, she knew perfectly well who he was talking about and nodded.

"This was actually the first song I managed to play on my own."

She played a couple of notes again. Dean tried to see if he recognized it, but Allegra knew a lot more classical stuff than he did. It was probably something by some big historically important composer who accomplished nothing in life but was famed in death. Still, the way she played it, Dean could tell she was really enjoying it. 

"What's it called?" he asked, genuinely interested.

"Think of me. It's from that show we're seeing tomorrow night."

"Sho- oh, the show... Right."

He completely forgot about that. When Allegra gazed up through her long eyelashes, he made sure to nod and put on a smile. 

"Can't wait." 

She beamed at him.

"You'll love it. I'm sure of it."

But Dean was actually thinking quite the opposite. He wanted to chase down monsters, not sit in some theater to watch some stupid opera. Even after looking up the story online, he knew it wasn't something he would go to on his own. It was based on some sappy novel, which Allegra, of course, had up in her bookcase. After skimming through it, he made up his mind fairly quickly that this was not how he wanted to spend a Saturday night.  
But he couldn't not go; that would surely break her heart. She'd been so happy with those tickets and even booked them a nice hotel to spend the night, not too far from the theater. And with everything she did for him at night... Putting up with one night of people singing until they broke glass was the least he could do. 

***

The night started out just fine. The hotel was nice, dinner was great, and they both dressed up for the occasion. Since the vest had been so well received last time, Dean thought it best to wear that again (even though he felt completely ridiculous in it) with one of his better jeans and a straight-cut jacket. And Allegra looked absolutely stunning in her deep green long-sleeved velvet dress and her red hair down, a single silver hairpin keeping some of it up by her ear. Dean was a little disappointed she wasn't wearing the necklace he gave her, but when she explained she was afraid to lose it in a crowd, he understood. 
Then, it was show-time. And Dean had to admit, the music was good. Great even, with the rock tunes in between the more classical songs. The costumes, the set, and even the singing. He had expected much worse.
But there was something that had escalated his answer to 'what did you think?' into a full-fledged argument going on for 20 minutes now. Only this time, he wasn't willing to just roll over and drop it to keep the peace.  

"Allegra, he's a killer!"

"So are you!"

"Wha- I'm a Hunter! There's a very distinct difference! How can you even compare me to him?!"

'What, you want me to compare you to that pathetic excuse for a viscount instead?!"

"Considering he was the good guy, yeah, maybe!"

Allegra scoffed in annoyance and rolled her eyes as she opened the door to their room.

"Dean, I know reading between the lines isn't one of your strong suits, but think about what you just saw for two seconds here. Raoul is not the good guy."

"Right, and what play did you see?" mocked Dean, taking his jacket off and throwing it on the bed. 

"I saw the one where an arrogant, privileged guy wanted to have glory and the girl and where the deformed 'devil' was actually the one who was in love with her and did everything for her," reacted Allegra sharply. "I agree that his means were questionable, but considering how people treated him and that lived as a recluse, I do understand his character. And the Phantom didn't put Christine in harm's way. He let her go in the end because he loves her. Ask Raoul to do the same, and I can guarantee his macho pride won't allow it. He friggin' used her as bait to get the Phantom, for crying out loud!"

Dean narrowed his eyes at her. His fist balled at his side. How could Allegra not see it? And after saying the words herself!

"So you're telling me that if you were in Christine's shoes, you would've gone with the Phantom?" demanded Dean, his voice trembling with rage. 

"Yes," Allegra answered like she was stating the most obvious fact. 

"Oh, really?! You would've gone for the devil?!"

Only now did Allegra's expression change, eyes widening at the sudden realization what all of this was truly about. And then she dared say he couldn't read between the lines. 

"Dean, n-no... That's..." she stammered, flustered. "That's not what I meant."

"No?" Dean sneered at her. "What did you mean then?"

Allegra's cheeks flushed red. 

"You... I-I don't... Dammit, Dean, I already made my choice!"

"Well, it sure as hell doesn't feel like it!"

He regretted it the moment the words came out of his mouth. Allegra stared back at him, slowly shaking her head. She stepped away, further increasing the distance between them. 

"I can't believe you," she whispered. 

"No, Allegra, that's not what I..." 

"No." Allegra cut him off, holding her hand up. "No, I don't want to hear it anymore, Dean. I... I thought we put this behind us! And that you understood!"

"I do! Allegra..."

She turned away from him, the skirts of her dress whirling about her. Dean grunted, wishing he hadn't raised his voice to her. He wished he hadn't done a lot of things these past few minutes. Why, just why, had he opened his big yap? 

"Do you remember the night we burned Bobby's flask at the cabin? He wanted to talk to me in private before we did that."

"I remember," said Dean silently, dreading where she was going with this.

"He told me to let my heart guide me. He begged me to make the right choice between you and... And he... he asked me to forgive you. He was just so certain that... that you were... But he also said that I had his blessing if I chose Sam. That he understood why I would go for him and not you. He made me promise that, once I made my choice, I would show those sons of bitches up in Heaven that love could surpass anything, including that godforsaken prophecy."

She stifled a sob before she continued.

"I made my choice when I wasn't even sure I would ever see you again, Dean. I forgave you for everything because I wanted to believe with all my heart that we could happen. But now... I'm not sure I can keep my promise to Bobby anymore. Because if you don't believe in what we have... why should I?"

Dean stared at Allegra as she hung her head. He wanted to speak, but the words got stuck in his throat. What could he even say to this? He took a step in her direction but her broken voice, barely audible, made him stop dead in his tracks.

"Leave me."

"Wha- What?"

"I said... leave me."

Those two words crushed Dean. He didn't want to leave. He wanted to erase that entire discussion and just go back to the theater and say, 'yes, I liked it,' and keep it at that. But he couldn't go back in time. And Allegra wouldn't allow him to come near her right now. If he tried, she would probably zap away someplace. He couldn't risk it. So, he did the only thing he could do - what she asked of him.

Dean grabbed his jacket and reached for the doorknob. He paused for a second to glance back at Allegra. She was leaning over the wooden dresser, looking absolutely devastated. And even though she had her head down, the reflection in the mirror still showed Dean the tears that stained her cheeks.

***

Downtown Manhattan never slept; somewhere, something was always happening. The lights never turned off. The noises never stopped. But even in the constant hustle and bustle, the wayward man walking up the avenue was too lost in his thoughts to notice anything going on around him. 
He considered going all the way to Central Park to get some peace and quiet to clear his head. Who knows, maybe he would find a lone werewolf or a Rugaru out on the prowl for easy prey. Killing something would really get some of his frustrations out. 
But he quickly realized that wouldn't make a difference. Not really. He knew what he had to do. He made a mistake. He had to fix it. Sooner rather than later. Or he would lose the woman he loved all over again. So, Dean Winchester ran back to his hotel, hoping and praying that his angel would still be there.