I Still Love You|| Dean Winchester x Reader

Epilogue

Dean watched the flames with weary eyes. The heat rolling off the fire was intimidating but he didn't mind much. It felt nice against the cool air.

    Sam stood silently beside him. His shoulders were hunched and his hands were shoved in his pockets. He glanced over at Dean who had a serious look on his face. He knew when they left Aquia View he'd be in a mood. Sam wasn't looking forward to dealing with it.

    "How are you feeling?" Dean asked. He stared straight ahead, watching as the last of the wood burn to a crisp and smelt the metal.

    "Fine, actually," You answered. He looked down at you, your Y/E/C glancing up to his emerald ones. "Those sons of bitches got what they deserved." You turned back to look at the burning warehouse, the place you almost lost your life.

    "Damn straight," He grumbled. Sam smirked and turned to head back to the car. You and Dean followed suit, his arm wrapped tightly around your shoulders and your head pressed against him.

    It had been a day since you got out of the hospital and three days since you woke miraculously from your coma. You'd been asleep for nearly two weeks before you came back to the land of the living. You were confused at first, but Dean explained what had happened to you after they left. You didn't remember much, the blood loss and trauma from the situation making your memories fuzzy, which you were thankful for. You asked Dean not to go in depth about what he saw and how bad you actually were. He respected your wishes and wished he didn't have to remember either.

    Sam stopped by the passenger door of the impala and turned to you. You broke away from Dean and held out your arms. He gathered you in a tight embrace.

    "I'll miss you, Sammy," You said. "Keep in touch, okay? Or I'll come beat your ass for ignoring my existence." Sam laughed and nodded.

    "Will do, Y/N/N." He smiled down at you. You pressed your finger to his chest and gave him a serious look.

    "Take care of this douchebag-" You jerked your head towards Dean. "He somehow always finds himself in trouble."

    "I will," He said. He patted your shoulder before giving you a smile and a nod. He opened the passenger side door and slipped inside, giving you and Dean the floor to yourselves.

    "So this is it, huh?" You said. "Goodbye... Again."

    "Yeah," Dean sighed. "Guess so." Ge gave you a soft smile and you wrapped your arms around his waist. He didn't hesitate to return the gesture.

    "I'll miss you, Winchester," You whispered. You breathed in deep, trying to memorize his smell; leather, gunpowder, mint and something else you couldn't quite put your finger on it. It was just Dean. It was a smell that once put you at ease, and then made you a nervous wreck and now was the smell of safety. Of home.

    "Me too, sweetheart," He said, his voice cracking slightly on the last syllable. He kissed the top of your head and you pulled back to look at him. Reaching up on your tiptoes, you pressed your lips softly to his. He cupped your cheek, moving his thumb along your cheekbone. His other arm wrapped securely around your waist as you moved your arms around his neck. Your lips moved in sync, almost as if your bodies flipped a switch and went back to how the two of you used to move together. The light stubble on his face scratched your chin and underneath your fingertips, but this was something you were craving for years, and the stubble added to your fantasy of being back in his arms.

    But of course, not all good things could last. He pulled away, panting lightly, the two of you out of breath. He rested his forehead against yours, the two of you basking in the presence of eachother.

    "I love you," He murmured. You grinned and forced the tears to refrain from falling.

    "I love you too," You said quietly. He kissed your forehead and looked into your eyes one more time.

    "Don't die," He said. You let out a breathy laugh and nodded, squeezing your eyes shut for a moment. Don't cry.

    "Likewise." He gave you a sad smile and then walked around to the driver's door. He gave you one last longing look and then slid in behind the wheel. He started the engine and pulled away from you. You watched as he drove down the gravel path, the rumble of the Impala humming in your ears along with the light chirps from the birds in the trees. You didn't try to hold back the tears anymore, letting them run down your cheeks.

    You may wonder why your story ended with the two of you not getting back together. Well, the answer is simple really. You made a vow. And no matter how much you wanted to go back on it, you made it for a reason; to keep yourself from getting hurt again. Of course, Dean made a vow as well. He promised to never get you hurt again. And as long as you were around him, pain would follow you everywhere, as demonstrated from your near death experience.

    But, "I am hurt," you say. Well, of course you would be. You just watched the man you loved leave, creating a brand new tear in your heart. But tears heal. Shattered hearts don't. Instead, it leaves a piece of your heart forever gone. This was the best thing. For both of you. No matter how much it hurt.

    So you stood there, your hands in your coat pockets. You watched the car until it was no longer in sight. Realizing that the part of your heart that healed slightly was torn some, the stitches that were put there over the past few weeks ripped open. Yes, he hurt you. So badly that you weren't sure you'd ever heal from it. Your heart was still wasn't as strong as before. But you couldn't deny the feelings you still harbored for him. Those feelings would never go away, but you made peace with that. You made peace with the fact you still loved him after he broke your heart. You made peace with the fact you were naive and allowed your heart to be broken.   

    But above all, even if it was the most painful part of this whole situation, you made peace with the fact you'd never be able to be with the man you loved again.

    Would you ever cross paths with him again? Well, that my dear, is a whole different story to tell.

The End.