𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐆𝐄𝐓𝐒 𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇

TWENTY

LOOK AFTER YOU // THE FRAY

SHADOW

Chicago, Illinois. Campbell Grace has never been a fan of huge cities like this one. She finds it ironic that she chose to go to school in Los Angeles -- the United States' second-largest city. It's too fast-paced with too many odd smells. 

As they pull up to the apartment building, Campbell reminisces on days spent here with her family ages ago. She couldn't have been more than 11 when she and Sam snuck off to see Cloud Gate, aka Chicago's famous "The Bean." 

"I don't see why we need these stupid costumes," Dean grumbles as he exits the car, "Dad did just fine without 'em." 

The youngest Winchester snorts as she watches Dean fidget in his alarm repairman get-up. The navy blue jumpsuit is a size too small for his large frame, causing him to walk a little funny. She and Sam are already dressed in theirs, the color matching perfectly with Campbell Grace's converse. 

Dean slams the trunk of the impala forcefully, "I feel like a high school drama kid." This earns a chuckle from Sam, who's folding up his newspaper and stepping out of the car. "Hey, what was that play you did?" Dean's eyes flit to Campbell, "what was it-- Our Town!" Dean launches himself into a belly laugh. 

Meanwhile, his sister is beet-red in the face. "Stop it! I was 11," she mumbles. 

"Yeah, you were good!" Dean smiles, "it was cute!" 

Campbell rolls her eyes and smiles as she recalls the memory. She had spent the entire week rambling about how excited she was, and had made John promise her over a thousand times that he would be there. And in true John Winchester fashion -- he wasn't. Campbell remembers looking into the sea of parents searching for him. Instead, she found a 14-year-old Sam and 18-year-old Dean with their thumbs up and big smiles, all the way in the back row. 

Campbell winces as she recalls it being one of the first few times that she had truly recognized Dean stepping into the father-mother role. 

Sam's voice snaps her out of her thoughts. "Do you wanna pull this off or not?" he asks his older brother.

"I'm just saying these things cost hard-earned money!" Dean exclaims. 

"Whose?" Campbell perks up.

"Ours! Do you think credit card fraud is easy?" The eldest Winchester shakes his head and starts towards the entry of the apartment complex. 

After speaking with the front desk for a few moments, they're ushered up to the victim's apartment. The short elevator ride to the fifth floor is filled with silence as the Winchesters eye each other. Sam caught word of the case in the papers about a week ago. In other words, he's really the only one who knows what they're about to walk into.

"You said you were with the alarm company?" The woman asks as she lets the siblings into the apartment. 

"Yes ma'am," Campbell gives her a smile as she passes her. 

"Well, no offense, but your alarm system is about as useful as boobs on a man." 

Sam has to stifle a laugh from behind the landlord as he trades glances with his siblings. Campbell Grace is holding back a chuckle just from how tall Sam is compared to this woman. 

"Well," Dean says as he begins to circle the room, "that's why we're here. Sort out the problem, and then make sure it never happens again."

Campbell traces her fingers over the window sill as she inspects the glass. No signs of an exterior break-in, no broken glass. "Were the windows open when you found the body?" She asks.