"Here it is," Auggie said, sweeping out toward where he knew Allen's was with a grand gesture.

The music seemed louder than usual tonight and a burst of women's laughter suddenly pierced his ears. Auggie could hear the grin that must have been on Dean's face when he said, "Looks good to me. So, how are we judging this?"

"First to ten phone numbers?"

If Dean thought that was unusually high (or low), he didn't say anything. "You're on." That rough, road-worn hand shook Auggie's and he gripped it hard, grinning in Dean's direction.

"Good luck. Based on how I remember you looking when we were kids, you'll probably need it. Buck-toothed, weren't you?"

Dean just chuckled. The noise of the tavern got louder as someone opened the door and Auggie followed Annie's lead inside. He heard a small sigh from Sam, who was just behind them. Clearly the little brother did not enjoy these sorts of activities as much as his elder sibling.

Auggie listened intently, picking up familiar voices instantly. "Christine! Jessie! How are you girls doing tonight?" He already had their numbers (and may have spent a passionate night with Christine a few months back), but he heard new voices mixed in with theirs. Annie guided him toward their table.

The high-pitched laughter went silent for a moment. He raised his eyebrows and then heard Christine say, in a hushed voice, "Who are they?"

His stomach dropped slightly. Dean didn't miss a beat, stepping past him and saying loudly, "The name's Dean. This is my brother Sam. We're friends of Auggie's, just dropped in to say hi for a few days."

Annie leaned over to whisper in his ear. "They're looking at him like he's a succulent dessert. I'm sorry, Auggie, but I think you lost this one before it even started."

He looked in her direction. "Succulent dessert? Oh, Annie, please tell me you're not going to be hitting on him too."

"They're both just so gorgeous," she sighed. He elbowed her—hard—and she flinched. "Okay, okay. Wanna browse the tables, look for potential dates? I can hide in a corner."

Auggie heard Dean's booming laughter at the table right in front of them and could tell by where it came from that he was now sitting. It sounded like there were at least seven girls, and based on the ones that he did know, they would be passing Dean's phone around and putting in numbers within minutes. "Nah. Like you said, a battle lost before it began. Is our usual table open? Let's just sit down. I'll let Dean have the win."

Soon they were each settled back in their chairs, beers in hand. Auggie leaned toward Annie and said, "Now I'm curious. Just what exactly do Sam and Dean look like now?"

"Like Greek gods," she sighed in reply.

He raised his eyebrows in her direction and she laughed. "Dean is blonde, really short hair, built like a damn football player, really amazing green eyes. Sam… the guy is a giant, but you probably could already tell that. He's got really long brown hair to his shoulders, brown eyes… the funny thing is, they don't look much like brothers to me. Except for the way they look at each other and talk to each other. Then you can tell they're really close." Her voice suddenly lowered. "Sam's coming."

The giant that was Sam lowered himself in the chair to Auggie's right and sighed deeply. "Dean is up to fifteen and counting. And I'm not going to hear the end of it until next week sometime. So thanks for that."

Auggie laughed. "How 'bout a round of beer on me to make up for it?"

They got another round and fell into easy conversation. Sam wanted to know all about working for the Smithsonian. As part of their cover, both Annie and Auggie had to keep up-to-date on the latest exhibits and future projects, so they were able to lie about their jobs convincingly. When Annie asked Sam about his job, the hunter shrugged it off easily. "Oh, it's not too exciting. You don't get into much trouble with bug-hunting. Working with my brother… we have good days and bad. It's been alright lately."

Auggie could sense hundreds of untold stories in his tone. He was puzzled but knew better than to ask with Annie sitting directly across from him. He wondered if it had something to do with John Winchester. Just as he was working up the nerve to ask what had happened to their father, a hand slammed down on the table next to him, making him jump. Dean's voice was louder than necessary in his ear, and the smell of vodka washed over him. "Eighteen. Count 'em."

Auggie held out his hand and a napkin was placed in it. He ran his fingers over it, feeling the indentations that the pens had left in it. "Annie?" he asked, holding it out to her for confirmation.

She pretended to muse over it for a while. "I don't know… there might be a few repeats here. And I'm pretty sure this one is the rejection hotline."

"I still believe that I won. Dean Winchester is officially the better ladies' man." There was a thud as he sat at the last seat between Annie and Sam.

"That's just cuz the girls here are all used to my blinding beauty by now. You're fresh meat. If we would have given it a few days, they would have come flocking back to me. Although according to Annie, you've got the build and face of a Greek god."

He expected the slap that she gave him, so he managed not to flinch. The image in his head of Annie was blushing furiously. Dean chuckled. "Well, you could definitely be a goddess, Miss Annie Walker."

There were a few strange noises that he figured was Annie knocking things over as she stood. "Oh God. I am not drunk enough for this. I'm getting us another round." She stumbled off.

Auggie could tell that she was out of earshot when Dean leaned forward. "But seriously, man, any time you have a problem like this again, call us. Here, I'll give you my new number and Sam's. Look, now you have two!"

The CIA operative rolled his eyes. "Both from men. The guys at the office would be so proud. And thank you guys so much for what you did. It's not often I admit to needing help… but this one would have been beyond me."

Sam's hand clapped his shoulder. "That's what we're here for. We should probably get going; we've got a long drive ahead of us. Next case is in Dallas, Texas."

"Thank God, somewhere warm for once." Dean's hand gripped his again and Auggie was surprised to find himself pulled up for a one-armed embrace—he hadn't even heard the older hunter stand up and with his ears that was saying something. He shook Sam's hand once more and then heard Annie return.

"Leaving already?" she asked, sounding disappointed.

"We've got a bit of a drive. It was really nice to meet you."

There was a brief pause as the Winchesters embraced Annie and then said their goodbyes. Auggie folded the napkin with their phone numbers and put it safely in his pocket. He would have Annie program the digits in his home phone later.

They drank in silence for a few moments, and then he heard the clunk of Annie's mug on the table. "So… bug exterminators, huh?"

He suddenly felt nervous. To cover it, he grimaced and said, "Do you know how a blind guy finds out he has a bug problem? Mostly by touch. By feeling little weevils crawling over you in the middle of nowhere. Not very fun, let me tell you."

"It's funny… I don't think I've ever seen an insect in your apartment."

"Well you turn in the lights all the time. That's when they hide."

The pause told her that she wasn't buying any of his crap. He took a sip of his beer and tried not to look guilty. Damn, the whole lying thing was so much easier when it was so someone who wanted to interrogate/torture/kill you. Lying to your best friend… that was so much harder.

When she spoke next, her voice was softer. "Is this something need-to-know for work?" she asked.

He hesitated. "It's more… something need-to-know in general. Not really work related. Nothing to worry about."

"Alright." He felt her hand, warm and soft, settle on his. "But everything is good now?"

Auggie smiled at his best friend. "Yes," he said confidently. "Everything is just fine."