Secrets Kept

Title: Secrets Kept
Rating: PG-13
Author: Reportergirl13
Fandom: Supernatural
Pairing: Dean/Jo-ish Angst
Word Count: 1,227
Prompt: just like a crow chasing a butterfly from lucklessforhim



With each passing day Dean grew more frustrated. Jo had been on the road with him and Sam for over a year. They worked together with Ellen and Bobby to kill the devil and now that things were back to normal, or as normal as they could be for them, he was finally ready to give things a shot with her.

But Jo, well it seemed to be the furthest thing from her mind. When she first made her way on the road with them there were penetrating stares, awkward moments, flirting, this never-ending dancing around each other, but now…nothing.

He leaned against the Impala as he watched Jo with Sam in the large field. They’d stopped to stretch their legs and she was currently making Sam lift her up to one of the lower branches of a tree so she could grab something.

Her hair had gotten longer. The golden curls tumbled down to the middle of her back, and glistening in the light. Her body had gotten curvier in all the right places too. His brother must have said something funny because her musical laughter floated through the quiet air.

He lifted his beer to his lips and took a long swig. He saw something move out of the corner of his eye and he turned away from the field. He frowned as a butterfly perched itself on the hood of the impala. The wings fluttered as they expanded.

He smirked lightly. It reminded him of Jo. The bright colors against the dark of the Impala, Jo was like that in his life. The three of them dealt with death on a daily basis and to him Jo was like the light at the end of the tunnel.

He could see several different shades of blue flash in the sun as the butterfly shifted its wings again and his thoughts drifted to something he read in one of Bobby’s books when they were trying to stop a Native American curse from being fulfilled.

If you have a secret wish, capture a butterfly and whisper your wish to it. Since butterflies cannot speak, your secret is ever safe in their keeping. Release the butterfly, and it will carry your wish to the Great Spirit, who alone knows the thoughts of butterflies. By setting the butterfly free, you are helping to restore the balance of nature, and your wish will surely be granted.

Dean didn’t believe in wishes. He believed in magic, in evil sons of bitches roaming all over the world, in the age old saying you can’t always get what you want, but for some reason he found himself slowly putting down his beer and studying the insect.

He braced his hands, pounced, and before he knew it there was an erratic fluttering of movement inside his palms. It felt weird. Almost like his hands were being caressed. He closed his eyes briefly, took a deep breath, and made a wish.

Seconds later he opened his hands and the butterfly was still for a moment, before Dean blinked and it was gone. His brows furrowed as he scrunched his nose and glanced back out at the field feeling stupid and slightly childish. Thank god they hadn’t seen him. He would have never heard the end of it.

They were too busy…fighting off a crow? What? He looked at the scene in front of him and chuckled. Apparently whatever Jo had taken made the animal is question angry. His brother and Jo were currently swatting at the crow until she threw something at it.

The crow stopped picked it up in its beak, and flew off leaving Jo to huff as her hands crossed over her chest. She helped Sam off the ground and Dean’s eyes followed the bird. It perched on a high branch in the tree by a nest. The crow was dark and menacing, but at the same time a truly magnificent creature.

It was fierce and loyal as it stood at the ready perched above the nest Dean assumed it was protecting. He smiled to himself at the description he just gave to a stupid bird. He had just described himself. He was the crow…and the smile left his face.

There was lore that crows were a bad omen. They symbolized death. He swallowed hard at the irony. His father loved his mother fiercely and she was killed, murdered in cold blood. Sam loved Jessica with same amount of passion and she was also taken from him. It seemed that any woman a Winchester man loved was doomed to death.

They were the omen. Maybe it was good then that Jo didn’t seem to feel the same way as he did about her anymore. Maybe the fact that she ignored his flirting and treated him like a friend instead of something more was a blessing not a curse. He might not survive something happening to her.

He sighed as Sam and Jo made their way back towards the impala. Jo brushed herself off and glanced at Dean as she made her way up the hill. The light caught his face in such a way that made his eyes gleam and her breath caught in her throat at the beauty of him.

She’d been on the road with them for over a year now and not once had Dean made a move on her. She thought it was only a matter of time; she’d wear him down, but nothing. When he started flirting back and making suggestive comments she thought for sure she had him.

She was wrong. Then one day it stopped. No more flirting, no more fleeting looks and it quite literally broke her heart. So that day she decided things between her and Dean Winchester were never going anywhere and she needed to grow up.

She’d rather have him in her life, be important to him, then throw some hissy girly fit and take off because the guy she loved didn’t love her back. Dean gave them a grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes as he picked up his beer and took another sip.

“You two girls done playing with birds? Can we get out of here?”

Sam glared at his brother as he opened his mouth. Jo called out before he could say anything.

“I call shot gun!”

“Damn…”

She grinned as Sam moved around to the backseat. Dean shook his head at her and chuckled.

“You’re horrible. You know he’s got long legs.”

She shrugged.

“I hate being in the back all by myself. It get’s lonely.”

Dean pushed himself off the hood, opened the door for Jo, and motioned for her to get in. He saw a confused look cross her face but she got in and he shut the door before walking around to his side of the car. He got in, started it, and revved the engine.

He glanced at Jo as he put his sunglasses in place over his eyes.

“Don’t worry sweetheart, you’re not alone.”

The tone of his voice was amused, but Jo could hear the hint of sincerity in his voice as he took off down the empty road. No Dean wasn’t with Jo…and it’s possible he might never be and maybe it was better that way, safer, but he’d always be there regardless…just like a crow chasing a butterfly.