Cabin Fever
Summary: After a hunting accident takes Dean out of the hunting game for good, he retires to a cottage in the woods with his one true love, but it’s not exactly a fairy tale ending. Pain and disability chip away at his Happily Ever After–and his sanity. After he fails to protect Chloe from a monster out of the woods, Dean falls prey to the monsters in his own head, and she and Sam must come to his rescue.
Dean x OFC
Word Count: 17,002
Rating: Mature
Warnings: depression and suicidal ideation, PTSD, chronic pain and disability, animal death, animal attack, alcoholism, heavy angst
A/N: Glob bless my betas. Besides creating a beautiful banner for it, @thoughtslikeaminefield forced me to take a hard, critical look at this fic. @princessmisery666 was with me every step of the way and helped develop the plot, and she provided more than a line or two to break loose my creative blockage. As did @monicawoe. She and @ladylilithprime were there with valuable insights and sanity-reinforcing encouragement. @risingphoenix761 was a wonderful cheerleader, as well. THANK YOU ALL.
(Also, since tumblr is an utter bastard, you get underscores instead of horizontal rules because I can’t get the latter to save.)
Cabin Fever
Cold wind howled. It rattled the garage door behind him and whistled through its seams, but Dean had stopped paying it any mind a while ago. He was plenty warm, and it didn’t have much to do with the space heater clattering in the corner.
Bandit, the husky mix curled on the floor beside him, wasn’t much bothered by the storm, either. He slept soundly at his master’s feet while Dean carefully funneled salt into an empty shotgun shell. Years of practice replaced the necessity of measuring; each eyeballed scoop was perfect. Dean fitted the cap and tapped it gently into place with a rubber mallet, then he set the finished shell aside and reached for the next one.
If you haven’t read this yet you need too!!
It’s excellent!! Angsty, and brutal and beautiful!! You won’t be disappointed!!