្.˚⠀━━━⠀⠀ THE LAKEHOUSE!
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❛ BOHEMIAN ━━ BOOK ONE ❜
𑁍ࠬ¸𓍢 ━━ ❪ SUPERNATURAL ❫ ˖ ୧ 。
𓆸 ┊ ⠀CHAPTER THIRTEEN⠀┊ ❀
◟ ✦ I'M A MONSTER HUNTER!❞
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There was something about Katherine Donovan that made Bowie Winchester question everything he believed in.

She was a firecracker, the kind of girl who loved to keep him on his toes, always knew how to push his buttons. She knew what he was thinking before he said it, always knew what he felt without having to express it.

Katherine was the kind of girl who'd walk through Hell for him.

She said so herself.

And yes, the protective feelings were all mutual; ask any boy he had scared off at bars within ten minutes whenever Katherine wasn't in the mood to flirt for a free drink. Or the girls she would practically make change states whenever they didn't take Bowie's 'no' for an answer.

There was respect between them. Bowie didn't treat her like a child, he treated her as an equal. Katherine didn't treat him like a liability, she treated him like a friend. Her best friend.

Which was why Bowie was horrified to face her after dodging her calls all week.

He stood in front of the Clinic she worked in as a intern for her college, holding a bouquet of flowers in his hands as he paced in front of the building, trying to find the courage to go inside. He felt horrible for ignoring her but he hadn't been in the right mental state as of late and he didn't want to put that on her.

After the Shapeshifter case, he'd been actively avoiding everyone, even his brothers. So really, she shouldn't take it personally. She's a woman of reason. Except for the part where he didn't give her a reason and just. . .dropped off the face of the Earth.

Whenever they tried to talk about it he'd shut them down, looking for more cases to distract him only to fall down another rabbit hole of depression from the amount of hunting gigs he picked up, like the case in Iowa with the infamous Hook Man.

A losing situation on all ends for him.

After the case with the Bugs it was time Dean put his foot down and practically kicked Bowie out of their motel room for a much needed break.

So, now he was back here in Kansas.

"Fuck it," He grumbled to himself, running a nervous hand through his hair before pulling the door open and stepping inside, inhaling that familiar disinfectant-scented air as he moved hastily to the front desk.

The woman behind it looked young, most likely another college student trying to make a quick buck by redirecting phone calls and clicking buttons. She had dark brown eyes and skin, her thick coil curls were tight and puffed out against her jaw, and her lips puckered in thought before her eyes raised to his from behind the desk, going wide.

"Uh, hey," Bowie swallowed, tapping his finger anxiously on the desk, "I'm looking for an employee here, uh, a lady—"

"You're lookin' for Donovan, aren't you?" She cuts off, light accent. The girl was grinning, "You're that Bowie man."

His face tinted red, "Do I know you?"

"I know you, Mr. Call dodger!" The girl continues, wagging a firm finger in her face, "She's going to skin you alive when she sees ya, you got some nerve showin' up here."

"Look," Bowie chuckled out, "Is she working today or not? I really don't have a day—"

"Then leave," Spoke a voice from behind him.

Katherine stood with her arms crossed over a white coat, her bottle blonde hair pulled up into a professional ponytail as she stared at him from behind her fringe. If looked could kill, Bowie would be six feet under.

"Hey," Bowie says lightly, a soft smile on his face as he held one hand up in greeting.

Katherine pinched her lips together, her eyes moving up and down his figure. Bowie looked terrible. The bags under his eyes were tinted darkly, his face was pale and there was a split on his lip. He wore a tight black t-shirt under a flannel shirt, under a black jean jacket with a knife belt holding up his pants.

He looked more Winchester savvy now, a long ways from his favorite blue sweaters and paint stained fingers, his hands now holding more blood in the months he'd been gone.

"You look like shit," She comments, looking around him and back at her friend, "Don't worry, Shelia, I'll escort him out."

     Bowie didn't move, "I'm not leaving until you hear me out."

     Her eyes narrowed, "I don't want to hear you out, I want to hit you with a car."

     He sighed, "Look, I know I'm an asshole—"

     Katherine steps forward, grabbing his sleeve and tugging him toward the door, "An asshole who's leaving!"

     Bowie pulled his arm out of her grip and crawled up on Shelia's desk, causing every head in the area to turn to him. Katherine's face goes bright red, thankful that her fringe hid her amused eyes as she covered her mouth with her clipboard.

     "Katherine Louise Donovan," Bowie began, holding out the bundle of flowers, "I, Bowie James Winchester, am the worst friend in the history of friends, and I want everyone in the building to know that I fucked up," He motions to the crowd, "I should've called and this is my formal apology."

     Katherine shook her head, "Bowie, get down."

     "Not until you accept my apology," He stated.

     "No."

     "Please," He emphasized.

     "Katherine just accept his apology, he's steppin' on my papers!" Shelia popped her head around Bowie's legs, giving her a look.

     The blonde hummed, crossing her arms over her chest in thought, "Say you wear women's underwear."

     Bowie's face instantly slacked, looking around, "You can't be serious—"

     "Oh, I'm serious," She grinned, "Say it."

     He swallowed thickly, face beat red, "I also want everyone to know that I wear women's underwear!" Everyone around them snickers, causing him to add, "The lace ones with ribbons, Katherine's knows what I'm talking about—"

     "Hey!" She laughed, slapping her clipboard on his legs as he scrambled down the desk.

     "Sorry, Shelia," He says bashfully. Bowie steps told the blonde, awkwardly handing her the bouquet of flowers with a light smile, "Happy Birthday!" He jokes.

"My birthday is in May," She corrects, turning her back to hide the light smile on her face as she stared down at the Calla Lillies, "If you think getting me my favorite flowers makes up for you being an asshole, you're wrong."

Bowie follows after her, "I thought me publicly embarrassing myself would help with that," He responds, she gave him a look, "Look, I'm not going to make an excuses. I'm sorry I wasn't picking up the phone, I just—" He swallowed thickly, "I've just been going through a lot of shit with Sam and Dean, and I wanted you to focus on college—"

     "Don't pull that crap," She snapped, spinning around to face him as she slammed the bundle of flowers against his chest. For a split second she shows what she's really feeling, her eyes watering slightly at the corners as she clenched her jaw, "You don't have a clue what was going through my mind when you didn't pick up the phone. For all I know you could've been dead, Bowie!"

     He cased his eyes down to his shoes, eyes burning with tears as he sniffled them away, the hallway seemingly empty, "I'm a shit friend, I'm sorry Katherine." He muttered.

     He turned around to leave, but Katherine's hand had curled firmly into his sleeve. He barely had time to register her roughly pulling him into a hug, her height inches below his as she threw her arms around his neck. The flowers dropped from his hands, wrapping around her waist to keep her steady.

     "I know you hate touch, but suck it up," She says loud enough to hear her.

     Bowie closed his eyes, squeezing her tighter as he inhaled her familiar sent of summer, a mixture of orange blossoms and honeysuckle and vanilla. The smells he associated with home and comfort.

     That alone made him cry against her shoulder, a small sob bubbling from his lips as he pressed his face into the crook of her neck. He could feel Katherine's grip tighten on him, and he felt like an idiot for crying, and instantly pulled away to wipe his face and swallow it down.

     "Sorry, I'm allergic to pollen," He shook his head, "I was a sneezing mess in the car, I met a cat last week, it's this whole thing, really—"

     "Shut up," She smiled lightly, "I've missed you," She adds, "You owe me like a thousand in rent, I'm a college student, not a millionaire."

     "Oh! That reminds me," He fished into his jacket pocket, pulling out an envelope and handing it to her, "That should cover any expenses for Stevie, you won't have to worry about it anymore."

     Katherine raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow, opening the envelope. Her eyes widened, rapidly counting the bills under her breath, "Eighteen, nineteen, twenty— twenty?" She looked up at him, "Bowie. Where the fuck did you get twenty thousand dollars!?"

     "Shh!" He shushes her, looking around, "It's not blood money or anything," He assures quickly, giving a shrug, "Dean taught me how to hustle in pool, people see a disabled and think I'm easy money. Dumbasses with cash."

     Katherine shook her head, and tries to hand it back, "Absolutely not, I'm not taking money from you. Take your Escobar ass out of here!"

     He quickly dodged out of the way, "No take backs, that's playground rules. You know better."

     She rolled her eyes, frowning suddenly, "Wait. What do you mean I won't have to worry about it anymore? What's wrong?"

     Bowie smirked, "Five steps to forgiveness, Katherine Louise," He holds up one finger, than another, " Step two, gaslighting."

"Gaslighting?" She repeats, not following.

"Oh, yeah, quick puppy eyes, me reminding Dean how he ruined my life with a bit of sniffling, I even threw in the whole deaf things," Bowie waved off, "Dean folded like a cheap suit and now I can keep Stevie!"

Katherine grinned, "Ten bucks says Dean won't last a week with Stevie's seagull bark."

     He snickered, "That's the point."

     "Katherine! Just got off my shift," Shelia walks up to the pair, "We're still on for this weekend right?" Katherine gave a wince, "Hey! You promised!"

     "Promised what?" Bowie looks between them.

     The blonde shakes her head, but Shelia was quick to answer, "A few of us from Yale are taking a camping trip this weekend before we start school again, last semester."

"It's glamping," Katherine corrected, "Shelia's dad is giving us a cabin. You've met a few people, Lora is going—"

Bowie winced a little, "Right, the girl who tried to kiss me on New Years."

"And she's taking her boyfriend, Roger," She rolled her eyes, "And Maya and Connor are coming and I don't want to be the only single one on the trip! it's embarrassing." Her eyes widened a little, "Hey, maybe you should come Bowie."

Katherine pinched her lips together, shaking her head, "Mmmm, no—"

"I love camping," Bowie smirked.

"No, you don't," She says through her teeth.

"I was a Boy Scout," He continued on.

"Self-appointed, doesn't count," Katherine muttered besides him.

"I wouldn't want you girls being up there in a cabin alone, it's dangerous," He shrugged, "I was a Marine, you know."

"Another lie," The blonde piped.

Shelia clapped her hands together, "Perfect, it's settled then, you're both going."

Katherine waits until Shelia turned the corner before punching Bowie so hard in the ribcage that he doubled over with a groan.

—————

BOWIE LEANED AGAINST THE DOORWAY OF KATHERINE'S bedroom with a smug expression on his face, watching as she packed her suitcase for the weekend with a scold on hers. Stevie, his brown Labrador with a single white spot on his snout, laid firmly at Bowie's feet, which made him unable to move much as the blind dog continued to cling onto him since arriving.

"So, are you going to tell me why you're back in town?" She asked, distracting herself by folding clothes as she kept her back to him, "Did you find John?"

"Not yet," He says, rubbing at his eyes, "I think the bastard found out I'm back, he switched up his tactics after I found him on a camera in Lawrence. Dean's getting snippy about it."

"Hm, did Sam force you into a break?"

Bowie pinched his lips together, "Sam's been avoiding me recently. . .kid almost sleeps less than I do, he's hiding something about Jessica's death, won't tell us what," He hesitates, looking down at his hands, "Besides, I think I scared him," He admits.

"Scared him?" She turned to face him, frowning, "What could you possibly do to scare him?"

     He gave a tight-lipped smile, "You'd be surprised."

     "Hm," She zips her suitcase, rolling it up to the wall, "You didn't answer my question." He frowned, "Why are you back in town."

     He closed his eyes, gathering himself, "I just missed you," He admits softly, giving her a soft look, "I missed this," He motions to the house, "Thought I'd owe you at least a visit after not answering the phone."

     She smiled, "Just don't embarrass me in front of my friends, kay? It's already weird I'm bringing an older guy on this trip, I don't want them thinking you're babysitting."

     He rolled his eyes, "I'm twenty-four, not fifty."

     "Could've fooled me," She pressed her suitcase into his chest, "Be a sweetheart, and put that in the car, woulda?"

     "Yes, ma'am," Bowie whistled to his dog, "Come on, Stevie."

     The Labrador gets to his feet, walking in Bowie's directly onto to miss the front door by a long shot. The man snorts a laugh, reaching down to grab the dog by the collar and out the door.

The drive up to Sheila's cabin was fueled with Bob Seger and road games. Stevie seems to enjoy the fresh air almost as much as Bowie did, especially when he knew the destination wasn't a hunting sight or a tracking location.

     For some odd reason, being in the car with Katherine was a lot more comfortable than being with his brothers.

No tension, no judgement, no secrets.

     They wore matching themed sunglasses, Katherine's being a blue rim while Bowie wore the pink ones. He didn't care that they were pink, which played onto Katherine's pleading to paint his nails — which he flat out refused.

"I still can't believe that asshole stole your letter," Katherine knuckled the wheel just at the thought of Dean Winchester. The wind whipping at her hair from the open window, "He's lucky I didn't have Crush with me—"

     Bowie grinned, "Crush?"

     "My bat."

     "You named your bat Crush?" He tried to hold in a laugh as he turned his neck to look at her, "Why? Because you crush skulls with it?"

     She blinked, "No, because of the turtle from Finding Nemo."

     Bowie's smile dropped, "Oh. That's less threatening."

     "We're stopping for milkshakes," She announced, "I'm sure McDonald's has those puppy ice creams right?"

     "Stevie and dairy don't mix, he's like sixty," Bowie shook his head, pushing the sunglasses down the bridge of his nose when Katherine pulled into the driveway.

     "I'll pay," She says instantly. He opens his mouth to speak but she holds up a finger to his face, "Don't even think about it. I'm paying."

     Bowie raised his hands in defense, happily sinking back down in his seat and pushing the sunglasses back up his nose, crossing his ankles on the dashboard.

It took Katherine a heatedly twenty minutes of ordering two milkshakes, sending them back as kindly as she could muster when they got the orders wrong a second time.

     "How hard is it to make two milkshakes?" She seethed as the pulled up the pathway of Shelia's cabin, "I can make these in my sleep!"

     Bowie sucked down another gulp of his vanilla milkshake with a soft shrug, "I think the cashier was just nervous, you're kind of intimidating."

     Katherine rolled her eyes, saying nothing.

When Bowie noticed Katherine's friends in the driveway, unloading the things from their cars, he began to grow self-conscious. Of course it was just his luck to make plans seconds before his social battery ran out. He often forgot just how different his life was to Katherine's.

Because technically, she's out of the life.

And technically, he's never left it.

"Katherine!" Shelia waved as best as she could through the amount of sleeping bags in her hands, "You made it!"

Bowie slides out of the car, throwing his duffle over his shoulder and watching with his elbow propped on the hood as Katherine sent Shelia a swift salute, whistling for Stevie to get out of the car.

"Welcome, Bowie!" The girl greets, passing him as she made her way up to the cabin.

"Bowie?" A girl with bright red-hair and blue eyes popped her head from over her green buggy, a wide smile on her face as she let out the most annoying squeal Katherine has ever heard, "Oh my god! Move Roger—" She pushed her boyfriend out of the way, rushing over to the man, "Heeeey!"

Bowie sends Katherine a panicked look, ready to dive back into the car but he was too late. A flash of red hair was the last he saw before Lora Stewart pulled him into the tightest hug.

The man tensed against her, holding his breath and closing his eyes as he waited for the uncomfortable feeling of her touch to pass.

Flashing a tight-lipped smile when she pulled back, Bowie tried his best not to shake, "Hi." He meeked.

"I can't believe you're here!" She drills, turning to Katherine with a false annoyed expression, "I thought you said that he was on a family trip! You should've warned me he was coming," She turned back to Bowie, smirking, "I would've worn something nicer."

Katherine held back a scoff, "Last minute addition."

Her boyfriend, Roger, clears his throat to announce his presence, eyeing Bowie. He was taller than the Hunter, much more muscular. Which was to be expected from a former football player but Bowie still wasn't intimidated by Roger and his neck-length blonde hair.

Bowie knew he could take down Roger with a corkscrew if he really wanted, but he didn't.

"Hey," Bowie raised a hand, "I'm Bowie."

"I know," Roger swallowed, jerking a nod, "Roger. Yale's star Quarterback, three years running. Scouted," He added on.

Bowie gave a single, uninterested nod, "Go, Bulldogs."

"You're so funny!" Lora dragged a laugh, hooking her arm into Bowie's as she gave her boyfriend a pointed look, "Be nice! Bowie's Katherine's guest!"

"Which means, I should show him around," The blonde curls her fingers into Bowie's collar and quickly tugs him out of Lora's grip, smiling kindly at the pair before dragging the older Hunter up the steps, Stevie training behind on a leash, "Still has a massive crush on you, I see."

Bowie grimaced, "She just wants to sleep with me," He corrected, "Isn't she the same girl who made a Zodiac sex list?"

Katherine snorts a laugh, "Yep, Aries hasn't been crossed out yet," She gives him a look.

"Yay, me." He drawled.

     Shelia's cabin was everything Bowie dreamed of if he ever settled down. It was large enough to fit two families, but still gave off that homey feel that smelled like fresh wood and hot chocolate. With around six bed rooms, three bathrooms and a balcony on each side, Bowie wanted nothing more than pull out a paint set and recreate the home from scratch.

     Which surprised him because he hadn't feel the urge to paint or draw anything anymore.

     Shelia redirected them to a grand master bedroom, where she had put makeshift beds around the four twin-sized ones in the room. Apparently, she didn't want everyone to have their own rooms because she knew they'd most likely trash it and she wasn't willing to clean it up when they left. So, the next best thing was to force everyone into one large room.

     No one really minded, especially when alcohol was involved and no one really planned to sleep anyway.

     Bowie was dragged around by Katherine most of the afternoon, introducing him to Maya and Connor who came late do to 'traffic' but their crumbled clothes and messy hair said otherwise. He had done his best to avoid Lora, who was always followed by Roger.

     He was lucky he survived the day, and by night everyone seemed to wind down around a fire pit in the back woods of the cabin, coolers of alcohol and snacks littered around the tables as they talked about college memories and future plans.

     Bowie stayed silent. His hand ran along the short fur of a sleeping Stevie as they both soaked up the heat from the roaring fire, a half-empty water bottle in his other hand as he listened to Connor's story about running around the football field naked on a dare.

     Surprisingly, Bowie's thoughts were on his brothers.

     He wondered if they were okay, or if they got any closer to John and his crusade. He wondered if Sam got a few hours of sleep in or if Dean forgot to take his gummy vitamins that he had laid out for him before he left.

     He wondered if they would come looking for him if he simply. . .never went back. If he just stayed here with Katherine and threw his phone in the lake and pretended he was normal he like Lora or Conner. But, Bowie knew that he would never. He couldn't.

     "—owie? Bowie!" Katherine's voice rang itself past his hearing aids and registered in his brain, her curious eyes locking with his as she motioned against to the fire, "What do you think?"

     "Oh, huh?" He turned to face them, face going red at their eyes on him, "Think about what?"

     "Gosh, sometimes I forget you're deaf," She teased, sending him a playful wink, "I said what do you think if I dyed my tips pink? As a dare obviously."

     Bowie chuckled a little, "Um, I'd say you're having a quarter life crisis before the quarter."

     The group chorused into drunken laughter, and Katherine motioned to him in a 'told you so' motion as she flopped back down into her lawn chair and took another short sip of her Cider.

"We all shared, so what do you plan to do for the future, Bowie?" Shelia questioned, "Katherine says you went to college for Art."

Bowie held back a grimace, "Yeah, I did four years for my Bachelor's in Fine Arts, and uh," His expression growing distant, "I was supposed to start working as a Professor at my college, I would've been the youngest Professor ever there, teaching traditional art but. . ." He chuckles away his distraught, "The world had different plans for me I guess."

"What happened?" Maya pressed, shaking her head, "Gosh, an opportunity like that? Did you find something better?"

Bowie shook his head, "Family matters got in the way, it's nothing I could've changed if I tried."

"A family man," Lora dragged, causing Katherine to chuckle behind her Cider, "Do you want kids, Bowie?"

"Um. ." Bowie frowned at the question, thinking hard, "Yeah. ." He admits, surprising himself, "Yeah, I wouldn't mind having one or two with the right person, I guess."

"Haven't found the right person yet?" Roger pressed, "Nobody in mind?" Surely he was saying that in hopes Bowie would say he had someone, maybe then Lora would stop drooling over him.

Bowie didn't know why his sight flickered to Katherine, or why she was already staring back at him. He swallowed thickly, putting his gaze back on the fire as he said, "No, I don't have time for relationships."

"But you got time for a quick bang on the road, am I right?" Connor teased, laughing at his own joke as he threw his beer cap in Bowie's direction.

Bowie shook his head, catching it with ease, "Nah, no I. .I'm not that kind of person," He shrugged, "I don't have those kinds of urges."

"Ooh, mysterious," Lora dragged, "I can never got Roger to stop thinking with this dick."

That sent the group into a fit on laugher as Roger reddened at her words, hiding his embarrassment with a scoff behind his beer.

"I just don't think you need to have sex to show someone you love them," Bowie adds softly, "It doesn't matter to me."

Shelia sighed in content, "That's so sweet, isn't that sweet?" She asked them, resting her chin on her palm, "What would you do then? To show someone you love them? Flowers?"

Her glaze teasingly went to Katherine, who reddened a dark shade and narrowed her eyes. She was referring to earlier, when Bowie had bought her flowers.

Bowie shook his head, smirking a little, "No, flowers are tacky. I'd walk through Hell for someone I love."

The girls awe'd, except Katherine, who rolled her eyes at Bowie's attempt of being cheeky, the group missing the wink he set her way.

Maya slapped Connor's shoulder, "Why aren't you like that?!"

The young man rolled his eyes, pointing to Bowie, "Look what expectations you set!"

"Alright, enough deep talk about love and shit!" Katherine stands up, "Let's do something fun!" She finished off her drink and stretched, "I'm not even drunk, I'm just bored."

"Skinny dipping?" Maya teased playfully.

"Hell no, you'd have to get me high for that," Shelia instantly shook her head.

Connor smirked, "I can help with that." He dug his hand into his backpack, pulling out a little plastic bag with what looked like large gummy bears. He shook the bag, "I got this off my cousin, makes them himself, says it's got a kick."

     "I'm in!" Maya grinned at her boyfriend.

     Roger shook his head, "I got practice Monday. Coach would kill me."

     "Oh, come on, don't be a little bitch," Connor joked, "It'll be out of your system by tomorrow!"

     Shelia shook her head, "Last time I took an edible, I pissed in a plant pot," She reminds, "Besides, we've been drinking already."

     Lora shrugged, "We came here to have a good time right?" She holds her hand out, "I want the blue one!"

     Roger rolls his eyes, taking one because Lora does.

     "Atta girl!" Connor grinned, "KD? Bowie?"

     Katherine instantly shook her head, "I'm good with my one cider, a small buzz is better than pissin' in a plant pot." Shelia told her eyes.

     "Bowieee?" Connor dragged, holding it out.

     The man shook his head, "I don't even drink."

     "Come on, it's not fun if only half of us is buzzed out!" Lora pressed, "Come on, Bowie."

     "Bowie, you don't have to," Katherine says instantly, walking up to him and muttering, "Don't you think you've been through enough?"

     He pinched his lips together, thinking.

     "It's only a few hours, we'll eat it at the same time!" Connor suggests, holding out a single red gummy, "You're too tense, man."

     Bowie sighed, "Okay, I guess." He muttered, taking the gummy in his hand and glancing to Katherine, who never looked more frustrated at her friends, "Don't let me piss in a pot?"

     "No promise," She flopped down in the grass, pulling Stevie into her lap.

     Shelia was convinced by Roger and Maya, and with a count down from five, everyone in the circle placed the gummy in their mouths and swallowed it, including Bowie, who felt the candy go down like a rock, a symbolization of a bad choice.

     He didn't know when it kicked in, he didn't even feel it an hour later as he sat in front of the fire in a complete daze as Maya and Lora danced up on each other in a slow dance across from him, Roger and Connor throwing darts at each other near the lake in laugher as Shelia sat next to him, running her hand through his hair.

     "Your hair feels like snakes," She comments in a drawl, giving it a soft tug, "Why are there snakes in your hair?"

     Bowie smacked his dry mouth, the act alone making him amused as he chuckled at himself, "I don't know, ask them."

     "Why are you in Bowie's hair?" Shelia dragged at his wavy locks, giggling to herself. Suddenly, she hummed, "Is that your real name? Bowie?"

     He shook his head, back and forth for a good minute, "No, it's a nickname."

     "What is it?" She pressed, "Is it Bowsmen? Boomie? Bartholomew?" She laughed.

     He mirrored it, "No." He reached up and rubbed one of her locs against his fingers, mesmerized, "I don't like my full name."

     "I don't like guys," Shelia responds, giggling hard as she marveled at her words, "Oh, god, I can't believe I said that out loud, that's so funny! I don't like guys!"

     Bowie snorts a drunken laugh, "I do."

     That sent them both into hysteria, doubling over each other.

     "I like both," Bowie continued, "I think, I don't know, I like. . .I think Johnny Depp is like— cute, but I also think Princess Leia is so hot." He turns his head to Katherine, who was scolding Roger and Connor for throwing sharp darts around, "Katherine reminds me of Princess Leia," He paused, "Katherine's hot."

      Shelia grinned, "Do you likeee Katherine?"

      He felt a panic rise, "What? No, no. Katherine, she's—she's my best friend. . ."

Bowie tried to pin-point times where he had thought of Katherine as more than a friend. All the little moments they shared alone together on their conjoined fire escape. He thought of every lingering glance, every shared secret, every soft touch.

     He was never uncomfortable with Katherine, despite the five year age gap. Bowie froze. Had he been so blinded that he never even considered her as more than a friend? Did she even see him that way? Did it matter? Katherine knew in their line of work, relationships ended with the other dead, or both.

     It just couldn't happen.

     But why did it make his heart flutter when he thought of it?

     "So?" Shelia says, still playing with Bowie's hair, "I have a crush on Maya, and she's my best friend." Her face instantly reddened in shock, "Don't tell her I said that, please—"

     Bowie waved her off, "Your secret is safe with me, don't worry!" He says, pushing the thought of Katherine away. He paused, leaning forward until his face was practically smushed against Shelia's, "I'll tell you a secret, too."

     She nodded in excitement, "Tell me."

     "I'm a monster hunter," The man's eyes widened, almost like he was shocked at his own words, "Oh, my god," He whispered.

     Shelia laughed, "That's sooo cool."

     "I'm serious!" Bowie dragged, "I—I'm a monster hunter," He nods, "Me, and my brothers, we—we kill all the monsters and we," He blanked, "I don't like my brothers," He says suddenly, "I love my brothers but, but I don't like them."

     "Why?" Shelia asked, not really paying attention as she pulled grass from the ground in the dark.

     "They hurt my feelings." Bowie explained, feeling weight lift off his shoulders even in his high state, "My brother Dean. . .he gaslight me into thinking I wasn't sexually assaulted for five years even though he knew it was true, made me feel crazy."

"That's deep," She responds.

"And-and my little brother thinks he's got it so bad our whole childhood, what about me you know?" He slurred the words out, pointing to himself.

     "Yeah, what about you?" Shelia egged on.

     "Yeah!" Bowie echoed, "I mean, I don't want to invalidate trauma here but what the fuck, you know? They're—they're making me find their dad, my abuser, because they're worried about him. Fuck, John!" He threw his water bottle up.

     "Fuck, John!" Shelia repeated, "Who's John?"

     "John's. . ." Bowie faltered, the man's face flashing in his brain, "John's my. . .he's a horrible guy with an ugly face," He settled on.

     "I hate John." Shelia nods.

     The pair falls into silence, watching as Katherine had given into her friends antics and started throwing darts at the Apple on Roger's head, getting a bullseye every time. Bowie smirked, knowing he taught her well.

     "My full name's Bohemian."

     Shelia's eyes widened, "Nooo way!"

     Bowie nods, "Yep."

     "Like the Queen song?"

     "I don't know," He shrugs, "I just know it means like, a person who's life isn't not bound by what is usual or the way most people do things. Wanderers, adventurers, all that jazz."

     He didn't know how his name related to himself, but he didn't like how it sounded. So, he simply went by Bowie.

    Shelia hummed, "That's so cool. I like your name. Mines boring, Sheee-lee-a."

     "I love your name," He dragged.

     "Hey, Bow!" Lora shouts, "Dance with us!"

     Before he could refuse, Lora and Maya were pulling him up from the ground and dancing around him to the sound on the radio, a song he couldn't even hear with how low it was. He stood there awkwardly as they danced, looking to Shelia for help as she laughed from the ground.

     A few moments into their pestering, Bowie had given in and slowly moved his shoulders, not knowing or caring if he was on beat as he slowly bobbed his head up and down. He felt nice. Which was the only emotion he could pin-point as the day dragged on.

He felt content, hardly paranoid or rigid among people who were so different than him but seemed to click together anyway.

     Long before he knew it, he was dancing around the fire with them, doing whatever motion his body felt as he chuckled along to whatever was playing without a care in the word.

     He saw Katherine there across the fire, watching and monitoring everyone. In that moment he could only compare her to the embodiment of Aphrodite. As cliché as it was. Her long blonde hair that framed her face, heart-shaped and soft as she clenched her jaw in her own little world.

Her baby blue eyes swept the area, before landing straight on him. He held his breath, his mouth going dry as he stared back. Bowie wished Shelia had never asked him that question, he wished he never thought about it as much as he did. Now it was all he could think about.

And he needed to know if it was true.

So, he stood up. Bowie didn't know if it was his nerves that slowly made him sober or if he was just too high to care about his choices. KD stands straighter as he walked, until he was so close he could smell her lingering orange blossoms and honeysuckle.

     "Dance with me." He muttered, his hands reaching down to grab hers as he gave them a soft tug.

     "You know these songs aren't my speed," She responds lightly.

     "Oh, I know your speed," He grinned, tugging her so hard she stumbled into his chest, "We can just make our own speed."

     "You hate touch," She reminded, allowing him to lead her anyway.

     "I don't care about that with you," He admitted in a muttered. His eyes were red and glazed over, but the smile on his face had never been more genuine, "Come on, Katherine Louis, pretend it's a Bob Seger song."

     Katherine rolled her eyes, smiling, "You're high off your ass right now, I know you're going to be embarrassed in the morning."

     "But it's not morning," He says, slowly running his hands up the sides of her waist, testing the waters as he kept her in place against him, "Can you scold me later? I want to dance with you."

     Her eyes softened, wrapping her arms around his neck as they swayed slow to their own music, "If I knew weed made you more open, I would've made you take it a long time ago. Saves me trying to read you all these years."

"I've always been open with you," He reminds, giving her a spin and pulling her back in, "You're probably the only person I've been open with."

"You're going to leave in the morning, aren't you?" She asked bluntly, tilting her head back to get a good look at him, "Running back to the Winchester circus."

     He hummed, "I'm the tightrope walker."

     "Try not to fall off the rope," She paused, "Or let Dean cut the rope."

He chuckled, "They hate to admit it, but they need me."

"And what if I need you?" She asked suddenly.

"Do you?"

Katherine hummed, not giving anything away on her face as she pressed her head against his shoulder, "Maybe," She says loud enough for him to hear, "I just think you should let them deal with their own problems."

     "They make their problems my problems," He says softly, "Besides, I gotta do this for me, too. Gotta kill the thing that killed my mom."

     "That's your brother's talking, not you." She tells him softly, "The Bowie I know made his peace a long time ago. ."

     "That was before it killed Sam's girlfriend, before it started making itself known, before John dropped off the face of the planet," He listed.

"But—"

"Katherine, I don't want to talk about this," He firmed, "For once in my damn life I want to live in the moment. Even if I'm happy for just a day, at least I could say I was happy."

     "I make you happy, huh?" She mused.

Bowie swallowed thickly, eyes casting to her lips and back up to her face so quickly he hoped she didn't notice. She did. "You always make me happy. I can be myself around you. That's why I'd rather spend my happy day with you."

"Why do you sound like you aren't going to come back from this?" She stepped back, frowning, "Why do you sound like you're going to drop dead any second?"

     "Because I could," He answered, making sure the others couldn't hear as he said, "You know how this life is, you know how we end up. It happens to hunters all the time."

     "Not to me," Katherine says firmly, "Not to you. If I can get out, then you can. We had."

     "Not this time," He muttered, eyes filling with soft tears, "Katherine, I. . . I'm scared I'm not going to make it out of this. I'm scared that something big is going to happen and I won't be able to stop it."

     "I'm with you," She firmed.

     Bowie's eyes scanned hers. And with every urge he didn't bother to fight, he slowly and softly leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers. Katherine froze, paralyzed against him as his hands tightened around her waist and flushed her closer against him.

The kiss was innocent and soft, testing the waters. She melted against it, accepting it for what it was and moving her lips against his own. Savoring it. What seemed like a lifetime was only a few seconds before Bowie pulled away.

"What was that?" She asked lightly.

"Testing the waters," His voice cracked softly, shaking away the blush from his face. His hands were still tightly around her waist, their bodies flushed together.

"Don't kiss me again unless you mean it," Katherine firmed, taking a step back, "I'm not the kind of girl that waits forever and I'm certainly not going to kiss you again when you're high."

He nods, "If this is over—"

"When it's over," She corrected.

"I'll come back," He continued, "And. . .and we can figure it out, and you'll go into Medicine and I'll do whatever painters do—"

"But for now?"

Bowie faltered, "For now. . .I gotta go back to my brothers."

Katherine nods, giving a sad smile, "If you get yourself killed, I'll kill you. With Crush."

"I'm telling you, less intimidating."

[ bowie's first au chapter & the emotions were everywhere. also, fic name drop > I hope you're liking this fic so far & feedback would be appreciated <3 ]