AN: Here it is. The promised sequel of Surviving December ... or the prologue of it anyways. Thank you to everyone who has shown such a great passion for this story and these characters. I hope you enjoy! ~Ella

Surviving February

Prologue

Thursday February 24, 2011

Halifax, Nova Scotia

Sarah ran down the sidewalk on Spring Garden Road, her maid of honour dress flung haphazardly over one arm and a bag of overpriced fruit in the other. The late February sun had created massive slush puddles which seemed to have taken over the city. The few blocks between Pete's Fruitique, where overpriced fruit was their specialty, and her apartment had been horrible. She had forgotten that the boots she had grabbed this morning leaked. Now, with every running step, her feet squished uncomfortably in the cool water pooled in the soles.

As she frantically tried to maneuver her way past the crowd of people waiting for the bus her cell phone started to vibrate. Groaning, she shifted her bags, trying to reach for the phone in her pocket. In the past week every call came from the same person … Olivia. It was exactly two days until her sisters wedding and it seemed like disasters were an hourly occurrence. The DJ had canceled. They had forgotten to have 'signature drinks'. Aunt Muriel said she had never received her invitation and now refused to speak to any member of the family. The colour scheme was all wrong.

"Hello," Sarah muttered, shoving the phone between her chin and shoulder as she darted across the street.

"I can't get married," Olivia's shrill tones came over the phone. Sarah barely kept herself from rolling her eyes.

"What now Olivia?" Sarah asked impatiently.

"The rehearsal dinner tomorrow, I can't think of what to bring!"

"How does that have anything to do with getting married?" Sarah asked, feeling confused as she tried to hurry down the street, anxious to get home as her arms strained under the weight of bags.

"Because it's a sign," Olivia huffed.

"A sign?"

"Yes. Of impending doom! I mean, it's me, when do I not know what to cook?" Olivia asked frantically.

"All the time. You suck at cooking," Sarah reminded her.

"It's just … everything is going wrong. We have a rehearsal dinner tomorrow at my future-in-laws and I can't think of anything to bring." Sarah could just picture her older sister pacing around her tiny apartment.

"Olivia, sis, calm down. You aren't even supposed to bring anything. If anyone should be freaking out it's me. I am the one who was stupid enough to volunteer to bring dessert," Sarah reminded her. She sighed in relief as she made it to the front porch of her apartment.

Sarah lived in the second-story apartment with her three best friends: Elaina, Lianne and Katie. Fumbling with her keys she tried to juggle everything in her arms.

"Oh my god, that's right!" Olivia groaned. "Don't make anything with chocolate, because Mike's sister is on a diet. Oh, and nothing cinnamon or coffee flavoured because his mom hates that. And nothing fruity or cake-y because his aunt doesn't like that."

"And actually, I shouldn't use water because I heard his cousin is H2O-intolerant," Sarah quipped.

"First, did you seriously just quote Finding Nemo? And secondly, I'm serious! I can't have my in-laws hate me before they are actually my in-laws!" Olivia said.

"Because everyone knows the cornerstone to every relationship is desserts. Seriously O, you are way over thinking this. Even if they decide to hold a grudge against the evil-mocha-cake-fruit-filled-chocolate-drizzeled-with-cinnamon dessert person. That person is me, not you. So please, just take a deep breath and calm down," Sarah instructed, having to walk sideways up the narrow staircase.

"Yes, but your my sister, so they would hate me by default."

"I said calm down."

"Right … did you pick up your dress?"

"Yes. I just made it back to my place."

"You walked?"

"Yes."

"You walked?" Olivia shrieked.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize walking involved murdering puppies," Sarah snapped, tossing her bags on the empty chair as she crashed on the sofa.

"You walked with your dress!"

"I know."

"You could have ruined it! What if you had dropped it?" Olivia demanded.

"First, I did not drop it. And second, this is not calming down," Sarah pointed out. "Now I want you to go and get a cup of tea or something."

"But ..." Olivia tried to argue, but Sarah was not having it.

"No buts! I'll talk to you later," Sarah said quickly before flipping her phone shut. She loved her sister, but she found herself day dreaming longingly for Sunday when the wedding would be over. Then she wouldn't need to worry about dresses or desserts … or speeches. Her sister would be happily married and off on her Honeymoon and Sarah wouldn't need to keep buying more minutes for her cellphone. Her day dream was interrupted by her phone vibrating, still clutched in her hand. Running a tired hand through auburn locks of hair, she brought the phone up to her ear.

"Seriously? You need to calm down!" Sarah said sternly.

"Um … Sarah?" a timid, very male, voice replied.

"Oh, hi?" she said, not expecting a call from anyone else.

"It's Ted," he supplied.

"Ted. Hi!" Sarah stuttered, feeling like a complete douche.

"Is this a bad time?" Ted asked kindly.

"No, no, I was just on the phone with my sister … sorry," Sarah muttered, feeling highly awkward.

"The one that's getting married this weekend?"

"Yep, that's the one," Sarah laughed. "She's feeling a bit stressed."

"So, are you busy with wedding plans today?" Ted inquired.

"No, thank goodness. Today is pretty much my last free day until after the wedding," Sarah joked.

"Well, in that case we should take advantage of it. How about that cup of coffee we keep meaning to go for?" Ted suggested, causing Sarah's heart to drop a bit.

"Oh, I can't today … I'm ..." Sarah tried to think of something, anything that would be a good excuse. "I'm not feeling well."

"That's too bad. Is it serious?" Sarah wanted to curse him for sounding so sincere in his concern. It made her feel even worse about lying.

"No, just ..." Sarah was sure she hated lying because she sucked at it. Trying to think of anything, she blurted out without even thinking, "menstrual cramps!"

Feeling completely mortified, there was an awkward silence in the phone conversation.

"Oh," was all Ted said.

"I need to go. Talk to you later," Sarah practically yelled, hanging up the phone and flopping onto the couch. She took comfort in the fact no one had heard her make a fool of herself.

"So, menstrual cramps? Who you avoiding this time?" Katie's voice drifted over her. Groaning, Sarah turned around and looked up at Katie smirking at her, leaning against the doorway.

"Ted," Sarah admitted, knowing it would be pointless to lie to Katie. Best friend and soul sister, Katie knew more about Sarah than anyone else. They had known each other their entire lives. Sighing, Katie silently pushed herself off the wall and curled up beside Sarah on the couch. Knowing Katie was waiting for her to explain, Sarah continued. "He wanted to get coffee."

"And that caused you to panic and yell menstrual cramps?" Katie asked, her lips twitching with barely suppressed humour.

"I didn't yell," Sarah muttered.

"Sweetie, I think if you are lucky, the next block didn't hear," Katie teased. "Isn't this the cute-Ted from your evening class?"

"Yes."

"So … why did you say no?" Katie asked, looking worriedly at Sarah.

Not answering Sarah just shrugged. She did not want to talk about what Katie was trying to talk about. It had been three months ago that the world Sarah had known was turned upside down. Two months since it had been slashed in half and in that time, she had been working hard to rebuild it. Part of that process included not really talking about what happened.

Because what had happened was ridiculous, impossible and insane. Three months ago she and Katie had disappeared. There had been no traces, no leads, and for a month, her friends and family had searched relentlessly, never giving up. Then they had shown up again. In their apartment. According to the police, they must have found a way to escape. The doctors believed they had a form of amnesia that had blocked the trauma of that month from their minds. No one knew that she and Katie remembered in vivid detail everything that had happened in that month. They remembered meeting Sam and Dean Winchester. They remembered hunting, ghosts, salt-rounds, Bobby, Castiel, and the frigging apocalypse.

The memories haunted every aspect of Sarah's life. She might go an hour or two, functioning like a normal person or working on wedding plans with her sister, but then it would hit her. She would remember Sam's laugh, expect Dean to make a witty comment, think she heard the squeak of Bobby's wheelchair. There were times she would wake up with the feel of Castiel's lips on her own, and she would feel the loss all over again. She would think she was doing fine and moving on, but then she would trip up and it was as if the scab had been ripped from her wound.

The one thing Sarah knew with absolute certainty was that she would never see them again. There was no point mourning over something she couldn't change. And she was defintely not going to sit on the couch and talk about it. Forcing a smile on her face, she did the only thing she could do … change the subject.

"Want to help me make a mocha-cake-fruit-filled-chocolate-drizzeled-with-cinnamon dessert?"

AN: So, what did you think? Chapter one will be posted this Saturday. The plan: take this Friday's episode and change it all around so Sam and Dean meet up with Sarah and Katie. Mwuhahahaha! I just love the idea of the Winchester boys facing one thing they have never had to deal with - a wedding. Anyways, I am super psyched for this Friday's episode. Like, jump up and down in my seat excited. Please review, because I have this theory that reviews will make time go faster ... let's see if it works? Until next time! ~Ella