[h3] Cason and Esme - collab [/h3] Cason wiped his hands on his pants, with a grossed-out look on his face. He looked over at the mugger's body and shrugged his shoulders. "I mean, there's no better lesson than Hell, right? I'm not the 'let a guy insult someone and live' kinda guy.", he explained, as she ran away from him to the diner. He sighed and ran to catch up with her, "I mean...right now the odds are against me not killing more than one person on any given day. You are like a chihuahua covered in honey. You attract trouble, it seems...but you want to fight all of it alone." Esme sighed at his words. She knew he was right in what he said. She shoved her hands in her pockets once again as they walked to the diner. “A chihuahua covered in honey?” she scoffed, cutting her eyes over at him. She looked down at the ground as she thought about how trouble seemed to follow her wherever she went and balled her fists in her pockets. “You’re right. I do attract trouble.” she sighed before looking back over at him. “Over the years I’ve become accustomed to it, it’s nothing new,” she told him. “Fighting it alone…….. It’s nothing new either. No one has wanted to stay around long with everything that comes around.” She then looked away and towards the diner. Cason cringed a bit at the fact that he had obviously hit a small nerve by mentioning that she wanted to fight her trouble alone. He gave a sympathetic look he wasn't even sure he was capable of when she looked at him. "Sorry I um...that I brought it up. But I'll tell you this...as long as I'm around, and you're stuck with me for now, you're pretty safe, love.", he explained as they approached the door to the diner. He stepped around in front of her and opened the door, ushering her in. Esme shrugged her shoulders as he apologized for bringing it up. It really didn’t bother her all that much. Hell, she’s been alone, fighting a good fight for years. She never really thought that she’d ever meet back up with Dean or join a group of hunters. She couldn’t help the small smile that came to her lips at Cason’s words. Feeling safe was something she never truly felt. “Thanks, I think,” she replied. After he opened the door for her, she stepped inside and looked for an empty table. There were plenty of empty tables. She made her way over and sat down. As he sat down across from her at the table, he placed both his hands together on the top, looking her over to make sure she wasn't bothered by her body language. He noticed he had made her smile. That was a start! Trust always seemed to start with a smile. "So, you seemed to be making some eyes at the older Winchester, back at the hotel in Illinois...", he started, wanting to probe more while he had her captive, "What's up with that?" Esme took her hands from her pockets and leaned back in the chair as she watched Cason take a seat across from her. By the way, he was looking at her, she knew he was trying to read her. When he spoke about making eyes at Dean, she couldn’t hold back the little laugh that escaped her. “I wouldn’t really call that making eyes,” she told him. She then reached over and grabbed a menu that was sitting on the table and opened it. “I was a teenager the last time I saw him,” she said, looking over the menu. “I was just trying to figure out if he recognized me or not. Come to find out, he did.” Esme then tilted the menu down slightly to look at Cason, she had a feeling she knew what his next question would be. “And before you say it. We’re just friends.” Cason tilted his head to the side and smirked when she said that she wasn't making eyes at Dean. He loved the drama of all of it, but he had also watched Dean with the other girl...Mika. So, he understood it. He picked up a salt shaker, fiddling with the top carefully, as to not burn his hand with it as he stared at the contents. He sighed, glancing back up at her as she explained their connection and that they were just friends, "Well that's boring. But, I guess that makes me being around less...stressful. Dean Winchester is particularly possessive. Our arrangement wouldn't go unnoticed, or appreciated, I assume." He sighed once again and adjusted himself with a frown, "You know the little blonde one...missing eyes and all that? I cared for her for months. She doesn't have a clue who she is...aside from what I've told her. And now she won't even look at me." As he complained, he realized he needed a drink, pouting at the thought of Annabeth not wanting to be near him, but clinging like static to Sam. Esme watched him as he carefully fiddled with the salt shaker as he spoke. “You would think that boring,” she said with a laugh. “Less stressful with you around. Are you sure about that?” she questioned, not really expecting him to answer. She hadn’t been around Dean long enough to see his possessiveness, so she couldn’t really give an answer to that. Though she was sure that Dean wouldn’t be too happy about their arrangement, as Cason put it, she only nodded to the statement. When Cason’s demeanor changed when talking about Annabeth, she brought the menu down to rest on the table. She nodded as he spoke about her. She could feel the change in him. “You really do care for her, don’t you?” she asked in a soft tone. She wanted to ask him what he knew but knew that question would most likely come later. “Can you really blame her for not looking at you?” Esme asked in the same soft tone. “You lied to her for some time. Then she learned the truth in a pretty shocking way.” She watched him to see how he’d react to what she said, hoping that she didn’t strike a nerve with her words. The last thing she needed this morning was a pissed-off demon. Cason nodded lightly at the question of his caring for Annabeth. He had to admit, he had become a little attached to her, even if she was a means to an end at first. He turned the salt shaker to the side as she continued and watched the grains fall against the glass. "Honestly? I can't blame her. I'm the one who tracked her down, after hearing buzz about her. I'm the one who convinced her to move me in...and just never got around to telling her the truth.", he explained, furrowing his eyebrows. He then sat the salt shaker down and shrugged, "But, now that she's near Sam Winchester, who undoubtedly can do no wrong, as long as they're connected, that's all...just done." He smiled sadly at her, as the waitress came to the table to bring water and take their order. As Cason spoke, Esme’s features softened as she listened to what he said. She couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for the guy as he explained what happened between him and Annabeth. She sighed as he talked about how Annabeth was with Sam. She had no words as if they caught in her throat. She felt a pain well up in her chest as she looked at him and saw his frown and furrowed eyebrows. When she found her words, the waitress had come up to their table. She looked away from him and to the waitress with a small smile. After clearing her throat, she gave the waitress her order. Eggs over easy, turkey bacon, and toast. She looked away and down at the menu as she closed it and put it back where she got it from. She took in a breath to rid her chest of the pain, then grabbed the glass of water and took a drink. After setting the glass back on the table, she brushed some hair away from her face and looked down at the water glass. As she looked at it, she rested her arm on the table and hovered her hand over the glass, then moved her finger around the rim of the glass. She became lost in thought, not even hearing if Cason ordered anything or not. Cason had watched her while she ordered, and became overwhelmed with her thoughts. He didn't address it while she ate, and he never ordered anything. He didn't really need to eat unless he felt like it. When it seemed she was finished with her food, he smirked over at her, looking down to text Sam, [center][i] "At a diner with Esme. About to head back." [/i][/center] He glanced back up at Esme, and clapped his hands, "Ready to dive back into Winchester-mania?"