Eden spent the next two weeks hauled up in the penthouse suite of the Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles. She'd done nothing but go on blood runs, then drink her weight in blood bags, curled up in a corner in the living area, darkened by drawn curtains - the epitome of wallowing in self-pity. Her phone had alerted her to texts several times, but it was on the upturned coffee table three feet in front of her and that was far more effort than she was willing to deal with. This was her fault. She knew that. But she had no idea how to fix it.
Eventually, she gave in and reached for her phone, squinting at the light when she unlocked it. She'd received four text messages and eight missed calls from Dean.
Impala 1: I'm willing to believe that there's more to this than what Lucifer said.
Text me back.
You'd better not be with him right now.
I'm getting worried.
Text me back.
Eden sighed.
Eden: I'm not with him.
Impala 1: Finally. I've been trying to get a hold of you all week. Where are you? I'll come to you and we can talk.
Eden: Not unless you fancy driving all the way to LA. I'll come to you, it'll be quicker anyway. Just let me know when you're alone.
Eden picked herself up from the floor and went to the bathroom, looking herself over in the mirror.
Her hair was a mess, her face was make-up free and streaked with red marks where she'd wiped a frustrated hand over her tears, her eyes still bloodshot and puffy. She was still wearing the black lace gown she'd been wearing when everything went down.
She was going to change - make herself look presentable and generally unphased by the whole thing, pretending to be the heartless Angel of Darkness the brothers now saw her as.
But another text from Dean broke her out of that.
Impala 1: Come now. I don't have long.
Eden sighed, taking one more look at herself before zapping out.
She appeared on a river bank. Turning around, she saw the magnificent Grand Rapids Public Museum.
"Eden." Dean called, walking over to her. "Man, you look like crap."
"Thanks. What are you doing in Michigan?" She mumbled.
"Got a case. Apparently it was one Bobby and Rufus got to first back in the day." Dean replied, motioning for her to take a seat on a nearby bench that overlooked the river. "So... You gunna tell me why you were cosying up with Lucifer for a whole month?"
Eden sighed.
"This is going to sound like an excuse, but I swear it's the reason." She said. "I was hyped up on Dark Angel energy. I felt myself again for the first time in two and a half centuries. I suppose seeing Lucifer out of the Cage reminded me of 'the good old days' or whatever you want to call it. The last couple of weeks, however, I sort of snapped out of it. Lucifer was getting on my nerves. That was the first time I went to check on you, when I helped you with the Banshee. That first visit, I was planning on making amends, but then Sam broke up with me and... I regressed a bit, I suppose. Then you texted and Sam and I got back on the right track and I was going to tell you about Lucifer, I swear. But he threatened Cas' life and I couldn't be responsible for you losing two friends in one go."
"Okay..." Dean breathed. "What about all that stuff he said you guys did? Did you cheat on Sam?"
Fresh tears slipped down Eden's cheeks as she looked down at her hands in her lap.
"Everything he said was true-"
"Oh, you've gotta be kiddin' me..." Dean huffed, shaking his head.
"No, wait. Let me explain." Eden pleaded. "He deliberately didn't give any context. When he said bed sharing, it was more him sitting next to me whining about being bored whilst I was trying to sleep. The 'stolen little kisses?' Exactly that. He kissed me, never the other way round, never with my permission and never on my mouth. The blood roses he got me for Valentine's Day but that doesn't matter... And the so-called 'sexual tension' was him making it so plainly clear that he wanted to screw me and... Me teasing him so he'd let his guard down enough to not get on edge when I went somewhere without him."
"You make it sound like you were his prisoner." Dean scoffed.
"No, I know I wasn't. I know I chose to be there. But... After I came back to my senses and came down from the 'Angel high' or whatever you want to call it, I think... I mostly stayed with him to keep an eye on him - to make sure he didn't do anything too drastic. I was thinking for myself when I agreed to come back to the Bunker with you, it was a purely selfish act. I wanted my boys back. That was when I went back to Lucifer to let him know I was leaving and that was when he threatened Cas' life to keep my mouth shut to you about him being out of the Cage. You have to believe me, Dean, I didn't mean for any of this to happen. You know me, you know the last thing I would ever do is intentionally hurt Sam." Eden sighed, getting frustrated that she probably wasn't making it sound like she felt or was maybe digging herself a deeper hole.
"Alright." Dean said after a few moments. "I believe you eventually had good intentions. I knew Lucifer most likely told the whole thing way out of context because what he said just didn't sound like you - whether you're Eden or Elizabeth. But letting him kiss you? That was a dick move. After everything you've just said, that's the part I'm still pissed at... Did it at least stop after the Angel high?"
"Yes, it did. He tried a few times, of course, but I pushed him away. I think that was when he was realising the fun was over too." Eden replied. "God, this is all so messed up. I love Sam. You know I do." She sighed, almost slapping away her tears in anger that they were still coming after two weeks. She groaned, putting her head in her hands.
"Hey, look, I'll talk to Sam, alright? He's gunna be mad I met with you, but he'll get over it. Honestly, he's been just as much of a mess as you seem to have been. He barely left his room after a week, nevermind the rest of the Bunker. I had to drag his ass out on a case to get him back to some sort of normalcy..." Dean huffed, looking out to the river's edge.
"Wanna see what I've been doing?" Eden looked over at him.
He shrugged.
Eden took his arm and zapped them off to the penthouse suite.
The room was dark, but through the streams of light breaking through the curtains, Dean could see a scattered pile of empty blood bags in a corner, the rest of the room in tatters from where Eden had lost it and trashed the place.
"Oh, wow..." Dean's brows raised. "You, uh... You do 'messed up' in style."
"I've never been one for doing things half-hearted." Eden commented blankly. "This just about represents how my head's been for the past two weeks. I ended up reminding myself of how badly I've messed things up a few too many times and the suite sort of paid the price. But hey, if you're going to spend such a colossal amount of money on a three storey penthouse suite in the middle of Los Angeles, you might as well get your money's worth."
"Do I even wanna know how much this all costs?" Dean cocked a brow.
"You'd probably have a stroke." Eden shrugged, walking off to put the coffee table back on its legs before picking up a few of the blood bags, lazily chucking them on the surface.
It was then that Dean got a text.
"It's Sam." He said, looking down at it. "Wondering where I am. Mind zapping me back over?"
Eden shook her head, walking over to him.
"Thank you for hearing me out, Dean." She uttered.
The Winchester sighed, pulling her into a hug. Eden wrapped her arms round his waist.
"I may not agree with how you handled everything, but I understand your motives, can't exactly say I did much better on my Demon high. I'll talk him down and I'll be in touch, okay?" He murmured, kissing her hair.
"Okay." She nodded.
"In the meantime, get this place and yourself cleaned up, go get a manicure or whatever it is you do when you're not hunting or with us. I'll see you later." He smiled, holding her by the shoulders at arm's length.
"Sure." She giggled.
"There, a smile. That's better." He grinned, tapping her chin with the side of his index finger.
"See you later, Dean." Eden shook her head as she chuckled.
He nodded as she touched his shoulder, sending him back to Grand Rapids.

Eden sighed, looking over the pile of broken suite items she'd put by the elevator for house-keeping.
The rest of the place looked just about perfect, bar the odd missing dining chair, side table, mirror, vase or cushion. The empty blood bags she'd put in the dumpster behind the nearest hospital and she was even cleaned up, herself. Her regular smokey eye make-up and dark lipstick had returned and she'd opted to change into a black satin, pleated gown with a straight cut neck-line and some simple black pumps.
It wasn't exactly often that Eden had time to herself. She looked around the living area with a frown, trying to decide what to do.
Eventually, she chose to take Dean's advice and go and have a 'girly day' at the spa downstairs.

The next day, on their way back from Michigan, Dean decided to get the Eden conversation out of the way.
"So, uh, look... You know how I've been questioning the whole 'Eden/Lucifer' thing?" He started.
"Not this again..." Sam sighed heavily, letting his head lull back in annoyance. "She admitted it, Dean. She said, right to our faces, that she knew it was him the whole time. What is there to question?"
"I just thought there was more to the story, you know? So, I met up with her yesterday."
"You what? Why would you do that?" Sam raised his voice.
"Because, as it happens, there was more to the story. And, hell, the girl's been tearing herself up about it for the past two weeks - made you look totally unphased by the whole thing and we both know how 'not the case' that is." Dean retorted.
"Good! So she should. She betrayed me - betrayed us. She knew Lucif-"
"Yeah, yeah, I get it, but hear me out, okay?" Dean cut him off. "For starters - and even she said it wasn't an excuse - she was high as balls on Angel juice for the first couple of weeks and was so far down the Eden rabbit hole that she wasn't able to care about what she was doing."
Sam rolled his eyes, leaning his upper arm on the window ledge of the car to rest his head in his hand.
"That was when the whole me texting her and you two kinda patching things up came into play and she grabbed her stuff from wherever they were staying. Lucifer threatened Cas before she left. That's why she didn't say anything." Dean continued.
"Yeah, I know that bit. But she still could've told us during that whole week she was back with us and he wouldn't have known." Sam retorted.
"Sammy, I don't know if you remember that time we went to that alternate universe and had to pretend to be actors, but we weren't that great at it. Lucifer would've known and he would've killed Cas." The older brother replied.
Sam knew he had a point.
"So, what was her so-called reasoning behind her cheating?" He mumbled.
"That's where it gets a little more complicated..." Dean sighed.
He told his brother exactly what Eden had told him - that the whole thing had either been an Angel high or a ploy to keep Lucifer somewhat under control.
"Fine. I get the rest of it. But she's really using celestial energy as an excuse for letting Lucifer lay his mouth on her?" Sam scoffed.
"Yeah, I told her I was still pissed about that too, but hey, haven't you made some questionable decisions whilst hyped up on Demon blood or whatever? Or when I was a Demon? Or when Cas wanted to play God? We all make mistakes, man." Dean said, pausing for a moment to let that process. He knew bringing Sam's Demon blood situation, in particular, was a bit of a low blow, but it was also something that would make him relate to and connect with the situation more. "I saw the place she's staying at. She wrecked the whole joint 'cause she was so mad at herself for screwing it up with you. I've never seen anyone love anyone the way Eden loves you. Honestly, man, it's friggin' scary. She would end the whole world if it meant you'd be okay."
"Yeah, I would too..." Sam mumbled, staring out of the Impala window.
"So, talk to her. Hear it from her and see the freakin' agony in her eyes for yourself. I mean it, Sam. You know I'm not into all that mushy crap, but you two are freakin' perfect together and I'll be damned if I'm gunna let you end this over one damn mistake that she barely even had control over." Dean told him.
"Yeah... I will." The younger brother sighed. "In my own time."

It was three and a half more weeks of exchanging text messages between Dean and Eden before anything actually happened.
Eden was in the living area of her penthouse when the room's phone rang.
"Hello?" She answered.
"Miss Smythe. I'm real sorry to disturb you, but you have a visitor." The woman at the front desk replied.
"I wasn't expecting anyone." Eden frowned. "Who is it?"
There was a pause on the line before the response came.
"Says his name's Sam." The woman said.
Eden's brows raised and her heart skipped a beat.
"Oh... Could you send him up, please?" She asked.
"Certainly, Miss Smythe. Have a good day."
The line went dead and Eden put it back on the receiver, glancing up to the floor indicator above the elevator doors.

She watched with a pounding heart as the 'G' turned to '2' and up and up it went until it read 'PH' for penthouse and the elevator pinged, opening the doors, revealing Sam.
"Hey." He said, stepping out.
His eyes widened a little bit at the look of her. She'd chosen a Hell of a day to make an effort.
Eden wore a black form fitting, floor length, strapless dress and some black pumps. Her make-up was subtle except for her signature matte dark red lipstick.
"This is a surprise." She breathed, clearing her throat awkwardly.
"Yeah, even on the drive down I was kinda second-guessing this." Sam replied.
They exchanged a glance as they were overcome by an uncomfortable silence.
"Uh, would you like a drink?" Eden offered, motioning to the kitchen area to her right.
"Sure." The Winchester nodded.
The beer pouring gained Eden all of ten seconds to thought-gather, another ten to go to the living area and sit down.
Sam opted for the chair at the end of the coffee table whilst Eden took the couch, sitting in the middle of the three-piece.
"So, I'm guessing you didn't drive twenty-three hours for a beer." She finally said.
"Technically, Dean drove." Sam shrugged, sipping his drink.
"He's here?" Eden frowned.
"Waiting downstairs in the bar." He nodded.
"Oh, okay." Another silence came over the pair, neither having a clue how the inevitable conversation was going to start.
Eden's anxious fingers knotted themselves in the skirt of her dress as they both decided on what they should say.
Sam placed the beer glass on the coffee table, clearing his throat.
"So, uh, Dean told me what you and him spoke about a few weeks back." Eden's body almost visibly relaxed as he spoke.
"Yes, he said." She replied. "I... Wanted to explain myself to you but, obviously, on your terms."
"No need. Like I say, Dean told me everything I needed to know and I've had time to think about it. I knew that the change you've gone through getting your memories and powers back was going to be tough for you, but I never really considered just how damaging it was." Sam sighed, taking a moment to think his next words over. "I just wanted to say that I forgive you... And that I'm sorry."
Eden's brows raised.
"You're sorry?" She repeated. "What on earth have you got to be sorry for?"
"Because I never bothered to ask you how you were doing. You're always so strong and sure of yourself, it never really occurred to me that you could be really screwed up about getting Eden back." Sam told her. "I kinda came to the conclusion that, with the exception of Alexander and Rowena, Lucifer was the only person in your life pre-Elizabeth, so it shouldn't have been that much of a surprise that you went off with him after the other two decided to stay in Hell - he was a sense of familiarity to you."
Eden frowned.
"I've never thought about it like that..."
"Am I wrong, though?" Sam asked.
"I suppose not..." She replied. "It would explain... Everything, more or less."
"So..?" The Winchester pressed, leaning over to place his hand over hers in her lap. "Do you forgive me too?"
Eden gave a scoff in disbelief.
"Sam, I still don't see that there's anything that needs forgiving. If anything, it seems that I need to be forgiven yet again for not letting my guard down enough with you so that you can realise when I'm not okay."
"Say it anyway." Sam cracked a small smile that lasted all of half a second.
Eden giggled, taking the hand he had over hers.
"I forgive you for not doing something that was entirely out of your control in the first place."
"Good." Sam smirked, moving over to sit on the couch next to her. "Then I can do this guilt free."
With the hand that wasn't holding hers, he cupping the side of her face and leaned in.
Eden sucked in a sharp breath, meeting him half way.
Yet again, her heart skipped a beat as their lips moved in perfect sync.
"You have no idea how much I've missed you." He whispered, pressing his forehead on hers.
"The broken furniture house-keeping had to remove a couple of weeks ago would beg to differ." She smirked.
"Yeah, I heard about that." Sam chuckled, opening his eyes to look at her. "Being mad at you sucks, you know that? I just can't believe it took me a near-death experience to realise just how much I need you."
"What do you mean a near-death experience? What happened?" Eden cocked a brow, looking back at him.
"I, uh, we were on a case involving some Werewolves a few days ago and I kinda almost died."
"Sam!" Eden exclaimed, shuffling back in her seat to address him properly. "Why the Hell didn't you call me?"
"It doesn't matter. I'm fine now. A little sore, but fine." He gave a breathy laugh, bringing her back in for a kiss.
This time, it got heated.
"You almost die again, Sam Winchester, I swear I'll finish the job." She mumbled against his lips as she tangled her fingers in is hair.
"Deal." Sam whispered.
He let go of her hands to steady them as he lowered them back onto the couch.
"You look beautiful, by the way." He whispered.
"I woke up and decided I was going to have a good day."
"How's that working out for you?"
"We'll see once this dress is off." Eden smirked, biting her lower lip.