tampered | you can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness

When; the night of the 10th
Rating; PG-13 to R for language because it's Dean Winchester
Characters; Elena Gilbert and Dean Winchester
Summary; Elena brings her boss take-out, attempts to help with a case and they bond.
Log;

Dean had been spending most of his days and nights at the station. At this point, it seemed like he was living there. Elena couldn't help but worry about her boss. Every time she saw him outside of work, he was drinking. In the morning, he was pouring bourbon or whiskey or whatever into his coffee. When didn't he drink? Maybe it was leftover from her unfinished business with Alaric who probably drank more then Dean had. Of course, Alaric hid it better and at least attempted to -- not. But, Alaric and Dean were different people. Elena assumed Dean was younger. And Dean was not a father figure. But, he was a friend.

Which was why Elena was returning after she'd left for the day. She didn't know how long Dean would be there but she knew he hadn't eaten. She let her roommate know she'd be back later than usual so he wouldn't worry.

Knocking on his office door, she held a bag of takeout in hand. She didn't know how long she'd be and she brought enough for the both of them. She knew she'd help in any way she could. If that meant helping with his latest case or listening, she'd be there.

Not that she expected Dean to open up if something specific bothered him. But, she'd be there if he had the urge.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

He doesn't feel as if he has much of a choice with the murders going on in the City like they are. He tries to do one thing here and that's keep people safe. He's not succeeding terribly well at this point and he's taking it hard, so yes there's whiskey in his coffee and at night, when no one is at the station, he gives up the pretense of hiding it.

He looks up when Elena knocks on the door and grins a bit crookedly and very tiredly at her.

"Hey, Sweetheart. Come on in."

He's got the bottle of Jack and a glass with ice and an inch or so of Jack in it sitting on his desk.

"You want a drink? There's sodas in the break room fridge or you're welcome to some whiskey."

Dean doesn't open up easily. It's not Elena or anything she isn't doing. It's just Dean, but if he's in the mood and everything lines up right, he might end up doing some talking.

Elena strides in, setting the bag down on a free part of Dean's desk, emptying its' contents. Chinese takeout. She doesn't know if Dean eats Chinese food but she also doesn't know a sole person who doesn't.

"I got a bottle of water," she says, pulling it out of her plastic bag. Looking around the room, she realizes that Dean doesn't exactly recycle. One of the things she did as the new receptionist was set up recycling bins out in the main room, so she slips out quickly, dropping the used bag in the plastic bin.

She grabs extra plastic knives and forks from the break room and brings them just in case Dean can't cut it with chop-sticks. It might be insulting if he could hear her train of thought. But, Elena always cares about the person she spends time with. And particularly, people she doesn't know?

Elena rarely meets people she doesn't know. Outside of the occasional homicidal vampire, Elena sees the same people week in and week out. That's what it's like to live in Mystic Falls. In a way, this is all like a shock to the system and in another, it's a needed bit of respite from the chaos and horror that her life had become.

Pulling up a chair, she sits opposite Dean, twisting off the cap of her water and taking a sip. She seems to have missed an overture, the "asking of Dean being hungry" but she knows for a fact it's been a long day and she can't pinpoint a moment where she saw him eat or even leave for lunch.

"There's brown rice and noodles, lo-mein, spicy teriyaki..." Chicken, she keeps back. It's implied.

Dean eats everything as long as it's not particularly healthy for him. Okay, so he doesn't really eat vegetables unless they're fried, but you know what he does eat? Chinese food!

Good call on the chop sticks too. He's probably got the dexterity to use them but he doesn't see the point. He can stuff his mouth a lot quicker if he's got a fork. He picks up one of the containers, pokes around in it and comes up with a forkful of food he stuffs in his mouth. he makes some appreciative sort of sounds with a full mouth but he doesn't actually try to speak until he's swallowed most of his food.

"Thanks. I'll get you some cash out of the petty cash for this. How you holding up? I know it's probably not the job you signed up for."

Elena uses a plate. Because, in this moment, she's a lady? She wants to eat a little more than just one carton at a time. So, she fills her plate with a light portion of everything. She smiles to herself as Dean makes appreciative noises.

"It is," she replies, twirling her fork to capture lo-mein around it. "I work at the police station. No matter what that means. And, as for holding up... I'm here. In one piece. You don't have to worry about me, Dean." Boy did he remind her of Damon, especially with wanting her to let him know if she doesn't have a ride or not wanting her to walk alone. She can take care of herself. Yes, the idea of a serial killer or even multiple homicides, it's unsettling. But, Elena had was on the radar of an Original. Having everything be a little more Law and Order? Not something she's complaining about.

"Did we... find any significance in the lines chosen?" She's back to Shakespeare as she takes a bite, munching away.

Dean just sort of picks at the different boxes, eating out of them as he goes. He admires that she's rolling with the whole thing. Most of the time, things at the station are boring. They deal with curse reports that they can't do anything about. They patrol and try to make sure the police have a presence, as if that'll stop people. Occasionally, they deal with things like this.

"Yeah, well I'm going to." End of story. Whether it reminds her of Damon or not, it's something that's a part of Dean. He worries about people and attempts to protect them.

"Sam's at the library working on it. He's a giant brain. If there's something to find out, he'll do it."

When she realizes he worries about people being her and people, she'll lighten up. She doesn't frown. Her jaw sets as she takes Dean's resolve in stride. She'll work on that - or try to.

"And in the meantime, we eat," she reminds him, knowing that he is but -- also knowing at any second, that flask is going to come out. Or, a coffee that he'll make just a little bit Irish..."

Oh yeah, he worries about lots of people. Sam the most of all, but he also worries about people he works with and people he talks with on a regular basis. Good luck with that, Elena. He went through thirty years of torture in Hell before he lost enough of his resolve to do what they wanted him to do.

Oh he's flat out got the bottle of whiskey on the desk. It's after hours and he's not trying to hide anything right now. In fact, he reaches over, takes a sip of his whiskey before stuffing his mouth with more food. "Hell yeah we eat."

you can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness

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