Running on Empty (Chloe/Dean, *R*, 8/?)
Title: Running on Empty
Author: Karen U
Category: Smallville/Supernatural
Pairing/Characters: eventual Chloe/Dean
Disclaimer: No one you recognize belongs to me
Rating: R
Spoilers: for Smallville - starts a few months after the season 3 finale, but will include stuff from seasons up to 6, probably... just with a twist. Chloe already knows Clark's secret. for Supernatural - starts pre-series, but will go up to at least season 1. For the record, as this fic starts, Chloe is just turning 18, and Dean would be 25.
Summary: She was all alone...
Warning: language, violence, adult situations
Part Eight
She shivered slightly as she stood in the bathroom, her skin still a little clammy from the shower she had taken. Dean had brought her straight to the bathroom when they'd gotten inside, bringing her bag in just a moment later, telling her that she should clean up and take care of all those cuts and bruises, and she had just nodded, deciding it was easier than arguing with him, and knowing that she felt kind of dirty and gross anyway. She'd been knocked to the ground in that alley, and she didn't want to know what kind of filth had been on that ground.
Taking a deep breath, she briefly covered her face with her hands, not wanting to look at her own image in the mirror. She'd pulled off her wig, and part of her wondered if she should put it back on, keep up the attempts to hide her identity... But somehow she figured that hiding who she was didn't really matter right now. There was something about Dean Winchester that made her think maybe he lived beneath the radar, too. But he wasn't bad. She felt almost certain of that, and it was only partly because he'd saved her from those guys earlier.
There was a sudden knock at the door, knuckles hitting the wood, and Chloe jerked, her head coming up at the sound, the blonde assailed with a look at her battered face. Bruised cheek, busted lip. She knew her hands and knees were scraped, too, and she'd managed to get a look at the start of a bruise on her back.
"You okay in there, Chloe?"
Dean's voice, of course, the slightly gruff sound of it already becoming familiar to her. That worried her slightly, like maybe she was getting attached to this guy... Because he saved her, maybe, and she knew she kind of had a thing for guys with a hero complex. Or it could just be because he was the first person to touch her since Lex had put his hands on her shoulders and told her to leave Smallville and not look back. Dean Winchester had been the first person to hug her since Clark Kent.
She closed her eyes at the thought of her best friend, at the thought of the secret she had discovered before she'd left, the secret that Lex Luthor had sent her away to protect... So he couldn't find her and force her to tell him, and she thought that act gave her insight into Lex Luthor: he wanted the truth, yes, he thirsted for knowledge... But he desperately wanted to be nothing like his father. And because of that, because that secret was what his father had been willing to blackmail and threaten her for... Lex had let her go.
"Chlo? You don't answer me soon, I'm gonna knock down this door, and then Bobby's gonna be pissed that I broke the damn door, and the two of us might be a little embarrassed depending on how much you're wearin' right now!" He sounded concerned now, or at least she thought that a raised voice with an edge to it was his version of concern, and Chloe heaved out a sigh before she reached out and opened the door, finding Dean right there, the man leaning against the wall right next to the door, so close she could practically feel him as she stood in the doorway. She stepped back almost immediately, as did Dean, the man apparently aware of her discomfort about her personal space being invaded. A bit of a paradox, really: she missed human contact, wanted a hug more than anything, but she was scared to get close. She'd been running for months now, never looking anyone in the eye for too long, keeping her head down, skipping from town to town when it seemed people noticed her a little too much.
"Sorry," she said softly, meaning she was sorry if he was worried about her for taking so long, and he frowned slightly as he looked at her. She saw his gaze move to her hair, and he knew he was taking in the fact that she was evidently actually a blonde and not a brunette. She'd shoved the brown wig back into her bag.
He cleared his throat. "Just... Wanted to make sure you were okay," he said after a moment, his frown deepening when he looked at her face. "You need some ice or something for your lip? Or your face?"
She shook her head, gingerly running her fingers over her cheek. "I think I'll be okay. At least he didn't get my eye. 'Cause... A black eye would be a lot more difficult to cover up with makeup than a bruised cheek will be. Not that it'll be a picnic doing that, but..." She trailed off, shrugging her shoulders as she stepped out of the bathroom. She blinked when he suddenly held out a bottle of water and a bottle of ibuprofen. She hadn't even noticed he was holding anything until then.
"Figured you could use some of this. Probably hurtin' some right now."
Chloe reached out, taking the bottle of pills first, opening it and pouring out two before taking the bottle of water from him. As she watched, he went back to toss the bottle of pills back into his own bag. "Thanks," she said softly, stepping further away from the bathroom, making her way back into the main part of the house and gingerly sitting down on the couch. She hadn't really had a chance to look around when Dean had ushered her inside earlier, and now as she did, she saw that the furniture was old but pretty comfortable, clearly a man's place, and there seemed to be books shoved into virtually every available space. "Where exactly are we?"
"At a friend's. Just a few miles outside of town. Bobby runs a salvage yard. People around town know him."
"Is he one of the guys you were with earlier?" she asked, referring to the first time she'd seen Dean, and it seemed to take a moment for him to remember that she'd told him she'd seen him watching her earlier. After a moment, he nodded his head.
"Yeah. One guy was Bobby, the other was my dad. They'll be back soon, and they aren't serial killers any more than I am," he said, and when she stiffened slightly at his words, he swore under his breath. "Shit, I didn't mean... Chloe, you're safe here, okay? Hell of a lot safer here than you would be at that hotel," Dean told her, then gestured to a room just beyond the stairs. "That's the guest room I use when I'm here. Since I figure I'm the one that brought you here, you take it. I've got the couch."
"I can take the couch-"
"And shock the hell out of Bobby and Dad when they come home to find you?" Dean asked, and Chloe winced a little at the thought of being asleep on a couch when two strangers came home. After a moment, she nodded.
"Okay. I'll take the bed," she finally said, then looked over at the man. "Dean, I just wanted to say-"
"You're welcome, Chloe," he told her, looking away as he spoke, and then he nodded towards the room he'd pointed out. "Now go get some rest. I figure you need it."
End Part Eight
Author: Karen U
Category: Smallville/Supernatural
Pairing/Characters: eventual Chloe/Dean
Disclaimer: No one you recognize belongs to me
Rating: R
Spoilers: for Smallville - starts a few months after the season 3 finale, but will include stuff from seasons up to 6, probably... just with a twist. Chloe already knows Clark's secret. for Supernatural - starts pre-series, but will go up to at least season 1. For the record, as this fic starts, Chloe is just turning 18, and Dean would be 25.
Summary: She was all alone...
Warning: language, violence, adult situations
Part Eight
She shivered slightly as she stood in the bathroom, her skin still a little clammy from the shower she had taken. Dean had brought her straight to the bathroom when they'd gotten inside, bringing her bag in just a moment later, telling her that she should clean up and take care of all those cuts and bruises, and she had just nodded, deciding it was easier than arguing with him, and knowing that she felt kind of dirty and gross anyway. She'd been knocked to the ground in that alley, and she didn't want to know what kind of filth had been on that ground.
Taking a deep breath, she briefly covered her face with her hands, not wanting to look at her own image in the mirror. She'd pulled off her wig, and part of her wondered if she should put it back on, keep up the attempts to hide her identity... But somehow she figured that hiding who she was didn't really matter right now. There was something about Dean Winchester that made her think maybe he lived beneath the radar, too. But he wasn't bad. She felt almost certain of that, and it was only partly because he'd saved her from those guys earlier.
There was a sudden knock at the door, knuckles hitting the wood, and Chloe jerked, her head coming up at the sound, the blonde assailed with a look at her battered face. Bruised cheek, busted lip. She knew her hands and knees were scraped, too, and she'd managed to get a look at the start of a bruise on her back.
"You okay in there, Chloe?"
Dean's voice, of course, the slightly gruff sound of it already becoming familiar to her. That worried her slightly, like maybe she was getting attached to this guy... Because he saved her, maybe, and she knew she kind of had a thing for guys with a hero complex. Or it could just be because he was the first person to touch her since Lex had put his hands on her shoulders and told her to leave Smallville and not look back. Dean Winchester had been the first person to hug her since Clark Kent.
She closed her eyes at the thought of her best friend, at the thought of the secret she had discovered before she'd left, the secret that Lex Luthor had sent her away to protect... So he couldn't find her and force her to tell him, and she thought that act gave her insight into Lex Luthor: he wanted the truth, yes, he thirsted for knowledge... But he desperately wanted to be nothing like his father. And because of that, because that secret was what his father had been willing to blackmail and threaten her for... Lex had let her go.
"Chlo? You don't answer me soon, I'm gonna knock down this door, and then Bobby's gonna be pissed that I broke the damn door, and the two of us might be a little embarrassed depending on how much you're wearin' right now!" He sounded concerned now, or at least she thought that a raised voice with an edge to it was his version of concern, and Chloe heaved out a sigh before she reached out and opened the door, finding Dean right there, the man leaning against the wall right next to the door, so close she could practically feel him as she stood in the doorway. She stepped back almost immediately, as did Dean, the man apparently aware of her discomfort about her personal space being invaded. A bit of a paradox, really: she missed human contact, wanted a hug more than anything, but she was scared to get close. She'd been running for months now, never looking anyone in the eye for too long, keeping her head down, skipping from town to town when it seemed people noticed her a little too much.
"Sorry," she said softly, meaning she was sorry if he was worried about her for taking so long, and he frowned slightly as he looked at her. She saw his gaze move to her hair, and he knew he was taking in the fact that she was evidently actually a blonde and not a brunette. She'd shoved the brown wig back into her bag.
He cleared his throat. "Just... Wanted to make sure you were okay," he said after a moment, his frown deepening when he looked at her face. "You need some ice or something for your lip? Or your face?"
She shook her head, gingerly running her fingers over her cheek. "I think I'll be okay. At least he didn't get my eye. 'Cause... A black eye would be a lot more difficult to cover up with makeup than a bruised cheek will be. Not that it'll be a picnic doing that, but..." She trailed off, shrugging her shoulders as she stepped out of the bathroom. She blinked when he suddenly held out a bottle of water and a bottle of ibuprofen. She hadn't even noticed he was holding anything until then.
"Figured you could use some of this. Probably hurtin' some right now."
Chloe reached out, taking the bottle of pills first, opening it and pouring out two before taking the bottle of water from him. As she watched, he went back to toss the bottle of pills back into his own bag. "Thanks," she said softly, stepping further away from the bathroom, making her way back into the main part of the house and gingerly sitting down on the couch. She hadn't really had a chance to look around when Dean had ushered her inside earlier, and now as she did, she saw that the furniture was old but pretty comfortable, clearly a man's place, and there seemed to be books shoved into virtually every available space. "Where exactly are we?"
"At a friend's. Just a few miles outside of town. Bobby runs a salvage yard. People around town know him."
"Is he one of the guys you were with earlier?" she asked, referring to the first time she'd seen Dean, and it seemed to take a moment for him to remember that she'd told him she'd seen him watching her earlier. After a moment, he nodded his head.
"Yeah. One guy was Bobby, the other was my dad. They'll be back soon, and they aren't serial killers any more than I am," he said, and when she stiffened slightly at his words, he swore under his breath. "Shit, I didn't mean... Chloe, you're safe here, okay? Hell of a lot safer here than you would be at that hotel," Dean told her, then gestured to a room just beyond the stairs. "That's the guest room I use when I'm here. Since I figure I'm the one that brought you here, you take it. I've got the couch."
"I can take the couch-"
"And shock the hell out of Bobby and Dad when they come home to find you?" Dean asked, and Chloe winced a little at the thought of being asleep on a couch when two strangers came home. After a moment, she nodded.
"Okay. I'll take the bed," she finally said, then looked over at the man. "Dean, I just wanted to say-"
"You're welcome, Chloe," he told her, looking away as he spoke, and then he nodded towards the room he'd pointed out. "Now go get some rest. I figure you need it."
End Part Eight