Sunlight hit Juniper in the face as she fluttered her eyes open, letting out a groan. Squinting, she sat up, rubbing her head. When her eyes were wide open, she looked around and saw she was in the backseat of a car with a long, leather jacket covering her. Her mouth felt dry and dirty, along with the intense pressure pressed on her bladder that felt like it was going to burst and the back pain that was slowly creeping up on her.

At first, she was confused, forgetting where she was for a brief moment. Then, she remembered the events that occurred the night before, and her heart sank just by thinking about it again.

Huffing a sigh, she leaned back against the seat, turning her head to see she was at a gas station. While Dean was pumping gas, she saw Sam inside with snacks and drinks in his arms.

"Afternoon, sleepyhead," Dean greeted her through the rolled down window, to which she jumped at the sound of his voice.

"Afternoon?" she repeated, puzzled as she shrugged off the jacket. "What time is it?"

"A little after one. Been on the road for ten hours," he explained.

"And you didn't think to wake me up?" she retorted.

"You had a long night," he told her. "Sam and I thought you deserved some rest after...well, you know, what you had gone through."

She nodded her head. "Right. Where are we, anyway?"

"Manteno, Illinois," he replied, taking the pump out of the car once the gas was filled. "Just nine more hours to go."

"Where are we going?"

Dean sighed, getting inside the car, turning around to face Juniper. "Somewhere safe. Trust me, no demon or any other supernatural creature will find us where we're going."

Juniper, while a bit skeptical, didn't ask any more questions. She figured if she made it this far with the boys and was still alive, then she could still trust them. Hell, she needed answers with what was going on with her, and after what happened with Eric last night...

Eric. She missed him so much.

"I'll be right back," she quickly said, stepping out of the car and heading for the trunk, getting her toiletry bag and then hurrying towards the store, finding the bathroom as fast as she could. Closing and locking the door behind her, she felt better after freshening herself up and relieving herself. But when she looked in the mirror, all she wanted to do was cry again, but she had no more energy to do so anymore.

When she was done, she went back to the car and put her things in her duffle, closing the trunk and getting back into her spot. Even though Dean didn't say anything else when she got back, she noticed the way he eyed her, looking a little concerned.

A minute later, Sam was strolling out of the store and towards the car, his hands filled with junk food and bottled beverages. Opening the car door with his free hand, he settled in the driver's seat, first handing Juniper a variety of chips and granola bars, along with a slice of pizza in a box and a few bottles of water. Juniper's stomach grumbled just at the sight of it all.

"The pizza is still warm," Sam told her. "I figured you'd like some real food."

"Thanks," she said, shooting him a small smile as she took the food and water from him, spreading them out along the empty seats beside her. She was grateful for it, seeing that she hadn't had a decent meal since yesterday's lunch.

"Hold on, where's the beer?" Dean questioned in an annoying tone.

Sam groaned. "Dude, there's beer at Bobby's. You'll survive for nine more hours without it."

Dean grumbled in response, sinking into his seat.

When the three got back on the road again, Juniper ate her pizza in silence, listening to the rock music Dean insisted was played, despite him not driving. Sam didn't protest, but he kept the music turned down low. Juniper wasn't sure whether or not their bickering was amusing or irritating. Then again, maybe with being an only child, their sibling relationship was something she would never be able to understand.

"So, Juniper..." Dean started, breaking the silence of no one talking. "Tell us about yourself."

"What do you want to know?" she inquired.

He shrugged in response. "Everything. Where you're from, your parents, if you ever survived a house fire at six months old..."

"Dean!" Sam hissed, hitting his brother's arm.

Juniper furrowed her brows, opening up a bag of chips. "A house fire?"

Sam briefly glanced at Dean with a hard expression. "We were gonna wait to ask you about this, but are both of your parents...alive?"

With some reluctance, she nodded her head. "Yeah, they are. Why?"

"So you weren't in a house fire when you were six months old?" Dean asked. "And your mom didn't die?"

"That's very specific and terrible to think about," she pointed out. "But no, we were never in a house fire. My parents would've told me." She paused, shaking her head. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"A lot more than you think," Sam replied. "We think that's the connection with...people like you and me."

"You mean crazy people," she bluntly stated.

"We're not crazy," he corrected her. "We're just special."

"Which is another word for crazy," Dean added.

Sam rolled his eyes. "You're not helping."

"What if he's right?" Juniper spoke up. "I mean, if anyone knew what we could do, wouldn't they think we were insane?"

Dean chuckled. "Sweetheart, you're already insane for coming with us."

"Well, it wasn't my idea," she pointed out.

"Still, you agreed to it."

Huffing a sigh, she leaned back into her seat with her bag of chips. Yes, she agreed to it, but only because she was convinced that she was safer with them, along with everyone she knew would be safer without her around. If she wasn't around them, then no other monsters were, and to Juniper, she just wanted the reassurance that everyone back home would be okay.

"Listen, Juniper, we know none of this is ideal for you," Sam spoke up. "Hell, the lives that Dean and I have aren't exactly the best or the easiest. We were roped into it, and now we can't really get out."

Juniper eyed Sam, nodding her head. "That complicated, huh?"

"Oh, you have no idea," Dean added, scoffing.

Balling up the empty bag of chips, she took a sip of water to get the saltiness out of her mouth before speaking up again. "So what exactly do you two do? You guys seem to know a lot about demons, so I guess there's a lot more you can add to that list."

The brothers merely exchanged glances.

"Well, it took years for us to know what we know, and thanks to our dad--"

"We're hunters," Dean cut Sam off.

Juniper, puzzled, leaned onto the middle console. "Hunters? As in--"

"As in, we hunt monsters," he clarified. "Sam and I are very involved in the supernatural world."

The girl widened her eyes in shock. "So there's more out there than just demons."

"A lot more," Dean said. "Demons are just the start of it."

With the hint of seriousness in his voice, Juniper was curious as to what else was out lurking in the world, even if knowing would only terrify her more. Just when Dean was about to open his mouth for more of an explanation, Sam shut him down before he said anything. While Juniper was a little disappointed, maybe she thought it was for the best if she didn't know about anything else beyond demons just yet.

Through the back roads and highways, the three conversed every once in a while, only when the boys thought Juniper was up for it. During their pit stops, while stretching their legs and going on bathroom breaks, they watched their surroundings, making sure no one recognized them or followed them from anywhere. Juniper could tell how paranoid the boys got at times, and she did her best to remain calm, too. Nevertheless, she checked behind her back, anyway, just to be sure, even though she wasn't exactly sure what she should be looking for. All she knew to look for really was a smell, the smell of rotten eggs, to be specific.

The routine was the same for the duration of the ride. But by the time the sun was setting in the evening, the three were ready for some food in their stomachs that wasn't considered a snack. They were in South Dakota by the time they stopped at a small restaurant, sitting at the last available table near the back. Juniper sat across from the boys, shifting in her seat until she was comfortable, watching as Sam sat down first, with Dean shoving him in the process.

"Dude, this is as far as I can move," Sam deadpanned.

Dean groaned as he plopped in his spot next to Sam. But when the waitress came by to take their orders, a smirk fell upon his face, to which Juniper couldn't help but raise her eyebrows towards Sam, who only shook his head and rolled his eyes in response.

When it was just the three of them again, Juniper glanced at Sam, wondering what they were thinking. She hoped with her abilities that they weren't waiting for her to explode, given the circumstances. But from last night's incident at the police station, she knew that she needed to stay relaxed, not wanting anything to happen between now and wherever they were heading.

"Everything okay?" Sam asked.

Juniper nodded her head. "Yeah, sort of," she admitted. "Last night was rough, that's all." She tried her best not to think about it anymore, and the car ride proved to be a good distraction for her, but she knew Eric would come back in her dreams, and seeing his face again would only bring back the pain from last night.

Sam turned his head and made a motion towards Dean, who, confused at first, got the hint and stood up to leave for a moment as he eyed their waitress at the counter, leaving Sam and Juniper alone.

"Look, I get that you hardly know us, but um...I know what it's like losing someone you love," he told her, sadness filling his eyes. "It happened to me last year."

Juniper was surprised to hear this, her eyes getting a bit wider. "Really?"

He nodded his head. "With my girlfriend. Her name was Jessica." He paused, taking a deep breath. "We met at Stanford. She was everything to me."

"I'm so sorry," she said with an apologetic look. "Eric and I met in high school, senior year. We moved to Baltimore for college, then we got engaged after that." She stopped, already feeling the emotions coming back. Looking down at her engagement ring, she felt guilty, almost forgetting that it was still on her finger. "We were just talking about our wedding once I got my master's." When she sensed a few tears forming in her eyes, she quickly wiped them away. "Shit, I didn't mean to make it about me."

"No, it's okay," he assured her. "We can talk about something else, if you want. You said you were getting your master's?"

Juniper nodded, a small smile coming across her lips. "Yeah, in public health, from Johns Hopkins."

"Wow. Impressive." Sam smiled back. "I was pre-law."

"Also impressive," she said, giggling a little. "So I guess you never finished?"

With some disappointment, he shook his head. "No. The whole monster-hunting thing ruined that future for me."

Juniper saw the way his smile faded, feeling bad that he never got to achieve his dream at Stanford. She realized that she would no longer be able to achieve that accomplishment, either, and the thought of not going back after fall break to continue, not seeing Nancy at campus every day...She couldn't imagine how Nancy would react when she didn't see Juniper walking to campus or when the seat next to her was empty in all of their classes. It hurt knowing Nancy would eat and study alone from now on, and eventually, she would walk across the stage in May with no friend to celebrate with, no Juniper there to cheer her on when her name was called.

Pulling out her cell phone, Juniper scrolled through her contacts and stopped when she saw Nancy's name appear on the screen. It took every fiber of her being not to go outside and call Nancy to explain everything, to say she was sorry and that she had to leave for everyone's safety, including her own. But the less she knew, the better. It had to be that way.

Dean made his way back to the table, along with the waitress with their food. The three became too busy to make any more conversation as they were trying to fill their stomachs. Juniper couldn't remember the last time she had a burger, but she was thankful for having something sufficient since the pizza this afternoon.

"So, Dean, you didn't tell me specifically where we were going when I asked you before," she spoke up, taking a break from the burger and working on the fries next.

"Sioux Falls," Dean answered, though it was muffled as he had a mouthful of food.

"Who's there? Another hunter?"

"Only one of--"

"Can you not have your mouth full when you talk?" Sam cut him off.

Swallowing hard and shooting Sam a glare, Dean placed the burger back on his plate. "Yes, another hunter. His name is Bobby Singer, and he's one of the best and most trustworthy guys we know. We're just gonna hunker down there until we come up with a plan."

"A plan for what?" Sam asked.

Dean shrugged. "No idea. I figured we'd come up with something once we got to Bobby's. Maybe he can help us out."

"Do you think he can help out with me?" Juniper questioned.

"We don't know, but he sure as hell will try," Dean answered.

Juniper wanted to feel like there was some hope with this Bobby Singer guy, and if Dean said he was one of the best and also someone they could trust, then she would have to do the same, especially if he could help out with her abilities.

By the time the three finished with their food, they quickly paid the bill and took one last bathroom break before heading on the road again. It was dark once they were outside, only the stars filling up the night sky. Once they were back in their seats in the car, it became quiet again.

As the drive went on, Juniper's eyes started to open and close as she leaned back in the seat, almost like exhaustion was about to hit her at any time. She fought the sleep as hard as she could, attempting to look out the window, despite everything being pitch black. Still, it was better than falling asleep and dreaming of the reminder that her old life was gone, that nothing was the same anymore.

In just a little over four hours, they arrived in Sioux Falls, where Dean drove into an old scrap yard filled with rusty cars that led to a small house at the end of the path, along with a large shed to the right. Juniper wasn't sure what to make of the place, wondering what kind of man Bobby Singer actually was. She could feel her nerves acting up the closer they got to the house, fidgeting with her palms in the process. The feeling of nervousness almost reminded her of whenever she met with Eric's parents at dinner or during holiday celebrations. She just hoped that feeling didn't stay long with Bobby.

Dean was the first to get out of the car, then Sam and Juniper. She followed Dean to the trunk, where he opened it and handed her duffle. Putting the strap over her shoulder, she gripped it tight as they made their way towards the small front porch and into the house.

"Bobby?" Sam called out.

"Honey, we're home!" Dean added in a playful tone.

"I'm right here, you idjits," an older voice retorted, walking out of what looked like a library on the right. With a scruffy appearance, he was a bit shorter than the boys and had a round face. Just based on the brief description she got from Dean and Sam on the way here, Juniper was expecting someone tall and built almost like a soldier, standing on the line between stern and soft. Instead, the Bobby she met seemed more like a grump.

Sam cleared his throat. "So, um, this is Juniper Langley. I told you about her over the phone." He turned to face Juniper, motioning his hand towards Bobby. "Juniper, this is Bobby Singer."

"Hi," she said, waving her hand and giving him a weak smile.

Bobby nodded his head in response, keeping his expression the same as he let out a sigh. "Well, help yourself to anything in the house. There's food and beer in the fridge and some snacks here and there. Got a room upstairs for ya already. TV doesn't work, so you might as well forget tryin' to mess with it."

Juniper motioned her head up and down as a sign of acknowledgement. "Thank you. I appreciate it."

"I'll show you to your room," Sam spoke up, leading her up the stairs and to the first room on the right. Aside from a few paintings on the wall, a dresser (where the TV was at), a nightstand, and a small bed, it seemed rather cozy, much different than what Juniper was used to back at her apartment in Baltimore.

"There's a bathroom down the hall that's all yours," Sam explained. "Do you need anything else?"

"No, I'm okay for now," she said. "Thank you for this, seriously. You and Dean made some of these last twenty-four hours less shitty. I mean, given the circumstances and all with...well..."

"Of course," he quickly replied. "We're just glad you got out safely." He paused, still keeping his eyes on her. "How are you holding up with everything?"

She shrugged. "It's still a lot to take in. I guess I'll just need some time to adjust to all of this."

He nodded his head. "Right. Well, we're here to help you with this whole thing, and we're gonna get down to the bottom of it. But if you need anything else just let us know. We'll be downstairs."

"I will. Thank you, Sam."

Backing up, Sam headed for the door. "Goodnight, Juniper."

"Goodnight."

With that, Sam closed the door to her bedroom, and Juniper was alone.

As she gathered her things for a shower and walked to the bathroom, she tried her best to block out any memories from last night. When she stepped under the hot water, she did her best to focus on that, but all that came to her was Eric. It made her think of their nights together before bed, remembering their last night together. Looking back now, maybe she would've done things differently had she known what was to come afterwards, like keep him safe somehow.

Once she was done with her shower, feeling a bit more refreshed after the long day she had in a car with Dean and Sam, she headed back to her bedroom and plopped her duffle on the bed, unpacking everything inside of it. She had no idea how long they'd be here, so she might as well get comfortable and used to Bobby's house. It was a long way from Maryland, as well as a lot different, but Juniper could adjust, even if it took some time.

Later that night, during the late hours, Juniper had a hard time going to sleep. Through the tossing and turning, she found it difficult to drift off, frustrated every time she heard the metal bed squeak. Finally, after getting nowhere, she sat up in her bed, grabbing her phone off the nightstand to check any messages she missed in the last few hours. She was worried as to what she was expecting to receive, and not to her surprise, she had quite a few missed calls and voicemails. Sucking in a breath, she checked the first string of missed calls coming from her mom, along with the one voicemail she got from her.

"Hi, June, it's Mom. I was just calling to see if you were heading home soon. We were expecting you to come today, but your dad and I thought it was best to give you some more time and space in case you needed it. But we're getting concerned now. Just call one of us back, sweetie, and let us know. Love you."

When the voicemail ended, Juniper's hands began to shake at the sound of her mom's voice. Just hearing how worried she was about her own daughter made Juniper's heart sink. Tears were about to form in her eyes as she scanned through the texts from her mom, not having the strength to delete them. So, she went onto the next name that popped up many times, which was Nancy, and Juniper placed the phone back up to her ear again.

"June! Oh my God, why the hell aren't you answering your phone? I heard about what happened to Eric on the news. I'm so sorry. Are you okay? Where are you? Call me back, please. I want to know if you're safe. I'm worried about you."

Juniper closed her eyes and began to softly weep, wiping her eyes. She almost chuckled at the sporadic way Nancy's texts were, always having some letters in all caps and misspelling some words every now and then. It hurt to know Juniper wouldn't get those texts anymore, and the last ones she had were ones of worry coming from Nancy.

When she went to check her voicemails to make sure she had heard all of them, she noticed one that was not opened yet, unsure as to how she missed it. She was even more confused when she saw the date it was sent was yesterday, around the time she was at the coffee shop, almost letting out a gasp when she saw who it was from as she slowly lifted the phone back to her ear to listen to it.

"Hey, babe. I'm just calling to let you know that dinner is almost ready if you want to go ahead and be on your way back here. This chicken parmesan is amazing, if I do say so myself." Eric let out a chuckle after that, to which Juniper smiled a little at this. "Anyway, just come whenever you're ready. I'll be here waiting. I'll always wait for you, Juniper. Love you. See you when you get home."

It was at that moment when Juniper couldn't hold it in anymore, especially after hardly shedding a tear all day. She felt guilty that she didn't want to think about him during the road trip with Dean and Sam. While maybe she needed them to keep her from thinking about what led her here in the first place, it couldn't stop her from mourning, from pushing down her grief so deep that she would never be able to move on. No, she couldn't do that to Eric or to herself. She needed to let her emotions out. She needed to grieve.

Juniper carefully got out of bed and slipped on some slippers, creeping out of her room and taking quiet steps down the stairs. As she headed for the front door, she saw Bobby slumped in his chair at his desk, along with Dean in the chair across from him and Sam on the couch next to the desk. She slowly opened the door and walked outside, hearing the crickets echo through the night. She began walking away from the house, weaving in and out of the cars parked all over the place. When she was far enough from the house that no one could hear her, she picked out a car and sat on the hood, staring up at the sky. She was hesitant to say anything, but she had to try, just to see if Eric could hear her somehow.

"Hey, Eric," she called out, then she quickly closed her mouth for a moment. "Wow, this sounds...this sounds stupid." She couldn't help but laugh through her tears, but she kept going, anyway. "I just...I thought maybe if I talked to you from here, then you could...I don't know, hear me or something." She paused, taking a deep breath and shaking her head as a lump began to form in her throat. "Shit, I'm so sorry this happened, Eric. If I had...if I had known that demon would come back and..." Covering her mouth, the crying only got worse. "It should've been me, not you, and I wish I could go back and change it. I swear to God, I would've found a way to save you, Eric. You would've--" She stopped abruptly, unable to go on anymore.

You would've done the same for me, Eric.

There were no amounts of apologies she had for not only Eric, but for his parents as well. Sure, they irritated her, and they didn't care for her, but they still lost their son, and maybe in a way, she was to blame for his death. She could only imagine the pain they were feeling was just as strong as hers.

This was not the life she had planned out for herself. This was not the dream, because Eric wasn't here, because she was different, because a demon made her that way. She was hurt, she was angry, she was heartbroken at the world, at not knowing what else was out there. She wanted to scream, but didn't have the energy to do so. Juniper was so tired of this new life already. Safe from her old one, yes, but tired nonetheless.

So for a while, Juniper stayed outside and just cried for Eric, Nancy, her parents, and even herself. She wished she wasn't tangled up in this mess, longing for a normal life. It was all she wanted out of life, something picture perfect for her to enjoy and for everyone to see. It was so easy picturing her wedding day before, but now it was difficult to see the ceremony like before, with everything fading away so fast every time she tried to think about it again. To know that she was no longer getting that dream just added to her grief, to the regret and guilt that she was the reason why things were like this.

Juniper thought about tomorrow, when she would not show up at the front door of her childhood home in Annapolis, along with not returning a single call or text message, her parents would go back to Baltimore and file a missing person report. It wouldn't take long for the entire country to know in a few days that Juniper Langley had disappeared from her apartment in the early hours of the morning just before the sun came out. They would search for the Juniper that they remembered, the Juniper that no longer existed. The only daughter that they knew and loved was merely gone, and all that remained was the ghost of her in Maryland.

Eventually, Juniper had no more energy to keep crying, her face hot and damp from the tears and her eyes red and swollen. Sniffling, she hopped off the car and headed back towards the house, knowing that all she could do now was take it one day at a time.

~~~~~~~

A/N: Well, things are about to get interesting (especially once I actually get to writing the episodes soon, too).

Anyway, comment, vote, more to come soon!

-A