The Straw That Stirs The Drink
Brooke felt a tap on her shoulder. “What are you doing here?”
She turned around to see Cat sitting behind her. “Er… seeing a movie?” She indicated the cinema around her to demonstrate what a stupid question she thought it was. “I’m on a date. What are you doing here? I thought you’d said you were going to stop following me.”
“You know how it is,” Cat grinned. “My work’s never done - be honest, you wouldn’t know how to wipe your bum without me to tell you what to do.”
Brooke grimaced at Cat’s language and turned her back on her, just as her date for the night sidled up to the seat next to her bearing a large popcorn and drink. “How you doing?” he asked.
“Good,” Brooke nodded, helping herself to a handful of popcorn. She couldn’t help but stare at him, a daft smile plastered on her face. With his thick, brown hair and mischievous green eyes, he was a catch alright. Brooke kept asking herself how she’d gotten so lucky. She hadn’t been out with anyone for ages and then the most gorgeous man she’d ever seen asked her out. Fortunately, the way that he was smiling back told her that he was thinking the same thing.
The lights went down and the trailers began. Brooke ignored the kicking in her back as Dean put his arm around her and she nestled into his shoulder.
===
It had been a strange choice for a first date movie, a story about a young man’s relationship with his dying grandmother and her visions of angels. Brooke hadn’t been able to stop crying at the end and now she was sure she looked a total wreck. Not how she wanted Dean to see her - she didn’t usually let men know she was so soft at heart.
“I don’t know why you’re crying, Brooke,” Cat said. “You and I both know that angels are nothing like that.”
“Yes, they’re just like you,” Brooke muttered.
“What was that?” Dean asked.
“Oh, nothing,” Brooke said. “I was talking to myself - it’s just like me to get all weepy over a silly film. My mascara must be all down my cheeks.”
“You look fine,” Dean reassured her, lightly kissing the tears on both cheeks. “More than fine. I think you’re beautiful.”
Brooke smiled, ignoring the ugh coming from Cat. Dean took Brooke’s hand. “I thought we could go for a walk,” he suggested. “It’s such a beautiful night and there’s a little place I know not far from here that does pasta to die for.”
“I bet he does,” Cat remarked, but Brooke was already walking off and paid no attention to her.
===
“He was right,” said Cat through a mouthful of food. “This pasta really is a-maz-ing.”
“Isn’t it just?” agreed Brooke.
“Sorry?” Dean looked up from his plate.
“Oh, uh, isn’t it just great?” Brooke asked. “I mean, the food, it’s just divine. How did you find this place?”
“It’s actually my uncle’s,” Dean told her. “Coming from a large Italian family that loves to eat, it’s surprising that more of us aren’t restaurateurs. As it is, two of my cousins also own restaurants and my nephew was on Junior Masterchef.”
“Impressive.”
“You can understand how much of a disappointment I am, then.”
“Yes. Medicine is such a shameful profession,” Brooke deadpanned.
“It is.” Dean nodded sadly. “My mother has never really recovered from the shock.”
Brooke laughed at the ridiculously mournful expression on his face and he started laughing with her, before leaning forward to kiss her, a long, lingering kiss that she could feel on her lips long after he’d moved away.
“Get a room,” Cat mocked, but Brooke wasn’t listening. All her attention was focused on the man sitting in front of her, the man she thought she could very well be falling in love with.
===
“You know it’s the right thing,” Cat told Brooke as they walked over to Dean’s house together.
“No I don’t. All I know is that you say it’s the right thing,” Brooke replied.
“Which means that it is. Because you know that angels are never-”
“-are never wrong,” Brooke chimed in, having heard the spiel a thousand times before.
“So we’re agreed, then? Tonight’s the night?”
“OK.” Brooke sighed. Sometimes things would be so much easier without an angel interfering in her love life, but annoying as Cat usually was, she was also always right. Brooke had never imagined that an angel would be a wise cracking, attitude ridden, young girl with red, spiky hair, but ever since she’d appeared, Cat had proven to have Brooke’s best interests at heart and Brooke knew that it was best to listen to her advice.
She knocked at the door and Dean opened it almost immediately.
“Faith!” He pulled Brooke into his arms and kissed her. Brooke responded, pressing herself against him in a way that she hoped let him know that she was interested in more. It seemed to have the desired effect and Dean ran his hands down her back, lightly caressing her buttocks, before pulling away. “I’m sorry,” he apologised. “I forgot myself for a moment. You just look so…”
“It’s OK,” Brooke assured him. “You’re looking pretty hot yourself.”
“Thanks.” Dean ran his hand through his hair, a gesture that Brooke had always found endearing. “How rude of me, keeping you on the doorstep like this, though. Come in. I’ve got a bottle of red open and dinner will be ready in five.”
===
Dinner had been delicious. Dean was every bit as good a cook as his uncle. Cooking wasn’t the only he was good at either and as Brooke lay naked in his arms, she thought that she couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt this content.
“Now’s the time, Brooke,” Cat reminded her. “He’s had his fun. Now it’s your turn.”
“You’re right,” Brooke nodded.
“What was that, Faith?” Dean asked.
“Oh, nothing.” Brooke kissed him lightly. “I’ll be right back. I just need the bathroom.”
Brooke grabbed her purse and while she was in the bathroom, got her stun gun ready. She’d become very adept at subduing men - Cat had taught her well. When she came back, she concealed it until the last possible moment and while Dean was convulsing, tightly secured his hands and feet to the bedframe.
“What was that all about?” Dean asked, outraged. “If you’d wanted to go kinky, you only had to ask. I wouldn’t have pegged you as a girl who liked this sort of thing, but I like to play as much as the next man and now it’s going to be a while before I can get it up again.”
“I wouldn’t worry about that if I were you,” Brooke told him. “You’d be much better off thinking of something witty for your last words.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“I forgot. You don’t really do witty, do you?” Brooke took a ball gag from her bag and strapped it in Dean’s mouth before
pulling out the sharp, sharp knife.
“Good girl,” smiled Cat. “You’re getting better and better at this.”
Brooke lightly ran the knife down the centre of Dean’s chest before starting to etch the first sigil into his left shoulder. It was vital that all the marks were just so if his soul was to make its way to Heaven.
“That’s right, Brooke,” Cat encouraged her. “First the mark of Auriel, then round to Gabriel, just the way I showed you.”
For the first time, Dean could hear the voice Brooke was talking to and he turned towards it, hoping against hope that perhaps it was someone he might be able to convince help him. Somehow.
He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Demon. There was no other word for the dark vision in front of him. The man was tall with red skin, little black horns and a long, serpentine tail. His feet were cloven hooves and his fingers were unnaturally long. He laughed when Dean caught his eye and winked at him.
“There’s my girl,” Cat said. “Your work gets neater every time. Soon he’ll be taking his place with us at Our Lord’s feet.”
Dean was yelling for help, protesting the pain, but his cries were too muffled to be heard by anyone except Brooke and she was focused on her work.
Dean screamed and screamed until he could scream no more.
This week we had to team up with a fellow contestant. I worked with the divine sarcasmoqueen and you can read her entry here. It'll be well worth your while :)