Chapter Text
The moon shone bright on Sam’s face as he blinked awake, torn from his already fitful rest. He rolled around in his bed, trying to get comfortable, when a loud clatter echoed once more from downstairs, having appeared to be what woke him. He unfurled himself from Jess’s side, which resulted in a sleepy groan from the woman of his dreams.
“Oh hush, you flatterer, let’s go back to sleep,” Jess sleepily grumbled, a hint of smugness in her otherwise disgruntled appearance.
“I said that out loud didn’t I?”
“Just that I’m the woman of your dreams, you dork. Now why are you even awake in the first place?” Her voice softened from her previously teasing tone to a sound of concern, “Is it the nightmares again?”
Sam smiled, her caring demeanor filling him with warmth before the situation began to fully sink in, his expression quickly morphing into caution and alarm.
“No, at least not entirely. I heard something loud downstairs, I think someone might’ve broken in.”
Jess bites her lip, muttering, “Shit, the only phones on the landline are downstairs.”
“Look, I’ll try to distract them, okay?” Sam stared her in the eye, giving her the most serious look she had ever seen from him, “You go straight to the phone and call the police while we’re fighting, and stay out of their line of sight. I don’t want you taking any risks, I don’t want even the slightest chance that I lose you.”
“I’m not leaving you anytime soon,” Jess murmured, caressing his face, “Not after all the things you’ve been through.”
Her expression twisted into a smirk, “Besides, this asshole ain’t got nothin’ on the two of us.”
“God, I love you,” Sam quietly chuckled, “Now let’s do this.”
Sam slipped completely out of bed, careful to avoid all the floorboards he knew would creak, and crept downstairs, Jess close behind. He stood poised around the corner from the noises coming from the other room, holding his breath. For a moment, he feared the person may be some form of monster, or worse, his dad. He hadn’t said anything about the supernatural to Jess yet and didn’t want her exposed to any of that.
A jab to his side broke his train of thought and he realized he’d been spacing for a moment. A reassuring smile to Jess caused her frown to soften as he mouthed ‘I’m alright.’ Sam took a beat to collect himself, then signalled to Jess to make her move. He barely caught a glimpse of her dashing across the hall as he leapt out himself into the room where the intruder stood.
Sam had expected more of a fight honestly. However the altercation was over quickly, the mysterious figure pinned to the floor in moments. Sam was barely given a moment of satisfaction at that when he heard a loud yelp from beneath him.
“What the fuck, Sam?!”
“Dean?”
“Yes! Dean! Now get off me you sack o’ bricks, jeez.”
“O-oh, right! Sorry.” Sam quickly stood, offering a hand to his little brother who simply slapped the hand away and jumped up himself.
Sam sighed a little at the shorter man’s standoffishness, calling, “False alarm, Jess, it’s just my weird brother,” and getting a curt laugh in response. She thought the house was being broken into just moments before and now his brother, whom he hadn’t seen in seven years , was in their house, and all she had to say in response was a laugh? He swore up and down, that woman would be the death of him.
Snarky women aside, his mind was now preoccupied with different matters. Like, say, his younger brother breaking into his house in the middle of the night with absolutely no warning and the many rough memories all this brought up. And like nothing else before, a wave of guilt washed over Sam. It had been there since he’d left for college - the regret he had over leaving Dean, who was only fifteen at the time , behind with their douchebag of a father - and now that he was there, in Sam’s apartment, having broken in or otherwise, the wounds were reopened and raw again…
And then he heard a sniffle.
“D- Deano? Are you-”
“Shut it, Sam.” In the dark, Sam could see his brother’s silhouette as he wiped his jacket sleeve across his face. “I’m fine, it’s just good to see you,” there was a moment of pause, “And don’t call me Deano, I’m not twelve anymore.”
Sam snorted. “There’s the kid with the attitude I know and love.”
Dean huffed, muttering something under his breath about “Stupid big brothers,” and “Fuckin’ giant.” Sam chose to ignore this, overwhelmed with a sense of joy at seeing his brother again, and decided ‘ fuck it.’
“Oomph!”
Sam had effectively crushed Dean in a bear hug. He wasn’t oblivious to how Dean stiffened at the contact, or how the hug was never returned.
“Sam… You’re crushing me…” Dean awkwardly chuckled, patting Sam on the back, “Can’t really breathe here…”
“Sorry, Deano,” He released the poor guy, feeling no remorse for nearly suffocating him.
“Guess I just missed you is all.”
Dean shot him a glare.
“Don’t go all ‘chick flick’ on me now,” he warned.
Sam just grinned by way of response. To hell with Dean’s ‘chick flick moments’ code, he hated that they hadn’t seen each other in so long, and by God, nothing was gonna stop him from hugging his little bro.
Behind them, someone cleared their throat. “Pardon the interruption but, in case you weren’t aware - and I’m sure you weren’t - this is my apartment, too, and I’d appreciate an explanation, if that’s alright.”
Sam turned to find Jess leaning against the doorframe, a casual smirk on her face that he wasn’t too proud to admit made him a little nervous. Jess was a force to be reckoned with when she got that look.
Sam smiled apologetically. “Right, sorry, babe. Dean, this is my girlfriend, Jess. Jess, this-” he threw an arm around Dean’s shoulder, “is my kid brother, Deano.” At that, he ruffled Dean’s carefully styled, spiky hair, earning him a small shriek from Dean.
“Sam!” The smaller man squeaked, coughing a little before his voice returned to it’s deeper tone, “First of all, I told you not to call me that, second of all, how dare you mess up my hair! Do you know how long it takes to make it look this good? I don’t just wake up looking like a million bucks, that takes time and effort and-”
Jess muffled a laugh behind one hand, cutting Dean off with a, “Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, Deano.”
Dean stiffens up again at that comment. It doesn’t go unnoticed by Sam how his hand twitches a bit, like he’s anticipating a fight. He’s well aware of the gun no doubt hidden beneath his many layers and the pit of his stomach squirms a bit at the thought.
It seems Jess notices Dean’s odd behavior as well and, while she doesn’t know the full end of the story, she knows enough about people, and the brothers’ own personal story, to see there’s something wrong. She gives a small smile, seemingly bursting with confidence that only Sam knew was fake, as she attempted to diffuse the tension.
“No need to act so stiff, I don’t bite,” She teasingly scoffed.
Dean shifted a bit at that, giving Jess a once over for good measure.
“Right,” he huffed, his posture still tense. His hand moved away from his waist where his gun was certainly hidden, but the tension in his shoulders didn’t quite relax and the sheer anxious, cold, anticipatory nature of his actions didn’t necessarily ease themselves. The potential crisis was averted, but the worry Sam felt for his brother was in no way gone. Something was wrong.
There was a beat of silence in which Dean kind of just shifted uncomfortably, shooting Jess the occasional glance.
Finally he cleared his throat. “Whatever. Sam, we need to talk.” He grumbled, avoiding his older brother’s gaze.
“Umm, well, what about?” Sam asked, cautiously. What could be so important that Dean decided to break into his apartment in the middle of the night after seven years of a complete lack of contact? And where was John? What was so special about now that made it more important than any of the previous years? He wouldn't ask all that of course. At least not now. Not with Jess right there and with Dean in such a state. It wasn’t safe.
Dean sighed with frustration, “It’s… well, it’s not something we can talk about here ,” he said as he shot Jess another glance. For a moment, a frown flickered across her face, but she composed herself quickly. Sam opened his mouth to protest that it couldn’t be so bad that Jess couldn’t hear, but the blonde beat him to the punch.
“Don’t worry about it, Sam. I don’t mind stepping out so you two can talk.” She cast a lingering look at Dean, something sad and deep in her eyes that Sam couldn’t decipher in the dark. Why hadn’t they turned on a light yet, come to think of it? “Some things are meant to be a family matter. I get it.”
Before Sam could tell her that she was family and he didn’t mind, she was already walking away.
“Tell me when you boys are done with your - what did Dean call it? Oh, right, ‘Chick Flick Moment.’” She casually said over her shoulder. Then she was moving back upstairs and out of sight. Sam was at least fifty percent sure she was eavesdropping.
As Sam stared after her, he heard Dean snort beside him.
“She’s quick. How’d you manage that one, Sam?”
The older man rolled his eyes and huffed a laugh. “Believe it or not, Deano, I’m quite the charmer.”
“Right, right, so that thing in Little Rock with the waitress was… What? Bad luck?”
“Hey! We promised we wouldn’t talk about that! And besides, I was a dumb teenager. You can’t fault me for being inexperienced!”
“Mmmhm, so I’m supposed to believe that was some kind of outlier?”
“I mean…” Sam kicked at the floor in defeat, glaring playfully at his brother as he laughed a bit.
“Don’t worry, I’m just teasing ya,” Dean snickered.
Sam smiled a bit to himself. Sure, his little brother was making fun of him, but what else was new? At least he didn’t seem as tense as before. Sam was no fool, he could see that most of the laughter and jokes were a front, but he was only a tad ashamed to admit that he still liked seeing a smile on the other man’s face, false or otherwise. Although, the thought of it being fake made his insides twist a bit regardless.
“Now, what was so important you had to break into my house anyway?” As soon as the words left Sam’s mouth, he regretted it. Any semblance of ease left Dean’s face and the younger man became serious and tense once more.
“It’s, umm… well, it’s about dad.” He admitted.
“Um, alright. What about him?” Sam asked, a little guarded. He knew their dad sucked ass in reality, but Dean, for whatever reason, still held some semblance of idolization for the man last he checked and it was difficult territory to say the least.
Dean sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Well, he went out on a job a couple weeks ago and… God, this sounds dumb, but I’m getting a bit worried. I know he used to disappear for longer when we were kids n’ stuff, but there’s something about this time around that gives me a bad feeling, and I’ve learned to trust my gut on these things. And I know you have, too.”
Sam frowned at him, the anxiety pooling in his stomach growing the more Dean spoke. “Alright, so… what do you plan on doing, here?” He asked.
Dean shifted uncomfortably, scratching at his neck in a telltale sign of deeper anxiety and the urge Sam felt to reach out and stop him from scratching at his neck like that pulled at his heartstrings so hard he nearly did it. But he knew deep down it wouldn’t get them anywhere good and he’d rather not set Dean off after so long being apart.
“I…” He sighed. “Well… Sam, I’m impulsive but I’m not an idiot. When I get a feeling like this, I don’t run in blind all by myself. Normally I’d call up Bobby or something, but he’s on his own case right now and ain’t pickin up. So I just thought… maybe you’d come help me out on this one? You don’t have to and if you do, I’ll be sure you get back to all this just fine and won’t bother you again, just… I don’t wanna go into this one alone.”
That guilt came crashing back all of a sudden. Seeing Dean so nervous and unsure of himself didn’t feel right. And that last comment in particular… Did he really think Sam wanted nothing to do with him anymore? It broke his heart.
Sam was about to agree when he realized something.
“Shit!”
“W-what?”
“I completely forgot I have an interview in just a couple days! Shit, shit, shit…”
Dean sighed, “That’s fine, guess you can’t help. I’m not gonna force you to miss your interview or whatever, just…” He trailed off, a dejected look on his face.
Suddenly, Jess!
“Sam-a-lam, I have a plan!” She chirped, leaping down the stairs in an incredibly clumsy and reckless manner that no doubt hurt without a bra, as he’s learned from her many complaints.
“J-Jess, what-?”
“Howsa' boooouuut…. We go do whatever Dean was saying and just get back here the next day in time for your interview? No harm, no foul, everyone wins!”
Dean stood stock still, a wide-eyed, panicked look on his face. He shot Sam a very freaked look, unaskable questions on the tip of his tongue, Sam appearing to smirk while holding back a few snickers.
“U-umm, Jess was it? I don’t think you fully understand…” The younger man said, timidly, fingers fiddling with the zipper of his jacket.
Sam held up a hand to Dean, offering him a soft, apologetic look. “It’s fine, I’ll, uh… I’ll explain everything.”
“Wait, Sam! That might not be such a good idea-”
“No, no, Deano, I’m curious now. What’s up?” Jess looked at the brothers with a quizzical eye that clearly made Dean anxious and, to be completely honest, it made Sam a bit anxious too.
“Christ... Here goes nothing…”
“Sooooo… you’re telling me… that ghosts, demons, gods, and whatnot are all… real…” Jess asked. Her tone was incredibly soft and careful, like tiptoeing through a silent house and trying to keep from waking its inhabitants. It made Sam’s stomach squirm.
“U-umm… yes?” He winced at how his voice made it sound like a question.
“Alrighty then,” Jess trilled, a casual lilt to her voice.
Sam nearly choked on his own tongue. “Wait, seriously? Just… ‘Alright’?”
“I mean, yeah. I kinda always figured there was something up with the world. Maybe it was the disappearing students in study hall last year that no one heard from again, or the funny voices people would hear in some of the empty rooms, but sweetheart I’ve always known the world was a much more complicated place. Although I’m mostly just coming along for proof.”
Sam stared at her, wide-eyed and breathless for a long moment.
“Jessica Moore, you are truly the most incredible person I have ever met.”
“Aww, thanks, babe.” She patted him on the cheek. “Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m probably gonna freak out about this a couple days from now, once everything really sinks in, but! For the the time being, I’m fairly chill with all this.”
Sam snorted out a clipped laugh. “Of course.” he muttered. “Well, now that that’s out of the way, I guess we have a trip to go on. Go pack some things, I’ll go talk to Dean.”
“Sure thing, honey.”
She pecks him on the nose and then heads off upstairs to go pack a bag for their impromptu vacation.
“No! No, no, no, no, no, she is not going with us!”
“Come on, Dean, she knows about the supernatural, and what’s more, she’s taking it scarily well. Besides, I don’t want to leave her alone here while we’re on a job. Not after mom.”
Dean flinches a little at that, his resolve seeming to crumble after the comment.
“Ugh, fuck you… Alright! She can come. But she stays in the car while we’re investigating. I don’t want her fucking anything up.”
“Aw, thanks doll, it’s nice to know you got faith in me, eh?” Jess snarks casually from where she’s now leaning on the stair railing.
Sam chuckles to himself, because of course she was listening.
“Got a bag packed?”
Jess smiled and raised the small drawstring back in her hand. “Bear necessities amiright?” she giggled a little at that.
Dean slowly dragged a hand down his face as Sam keeled over, his laughter nearing hysterical.
“Was that a Junglebook reference?” Dean scoffed.
“Maybe, maybe not, you can’t prove anything, copper.” She grinned at him as Sam stood back up to go get his own things packed. Before he could reach the stairs, a bag smacked him in the chest, eliciting an “Oof” from him and making Dean snicker in the background. “You two talked so long I had the time to pack a bag for you too.” Jess rolled her eyes and the boys.
“I’m not sure whether to thank you or be frustrated with you.” Sam frowned down at the bag he now had pressed to his chest, a matching drawstring bag to the one in Jess’s hands.
“That’s my goal, sweetheart. Now, let’s get this show on the road, I already took some melatonin and I plan to nap on the drive. Move your butts, now.”
Dean rolled his eyes and grumbled under his breath something about how pushy and annoying Jess was but Sam just smiled and bumped shoulders with his little brother, playfully, as a sign of good faith.
The three made their way outside to where the Impala was parked before Jess loudly proclaimed her claim of shotgun.
Dean did not take kindly to this.
“No. You of all people are not allowed to call shotgun, especially when Baby is involved. Move your ass to the backseat,” He hissed, glaring directly at her.
Jess made a huffy remark about how childish he was being, but otherwise climbed in back without any arguments, causing Sam to simply snort at their behavior before he reached to the passenger door. He pulled on the car door, but Dean didn’t unlock Baby’s doors.
“Nope, you made me bring her on this job so you’re riding back, too. Think of it as payback for makin’ me deal with her ,” he remarked snippily.
The older Winchester sighed but didn’t fight Dean on it.
“Jerk.”
As he climbed in next to Jess and buckled up, Dean adjusted the driver’s seat a little to fit his small stature, as it had previously been adjusted to fit a larger man, presumably his dad. Snuggling into the seat as much as possible, he turned around to say one thing to Sam before taking off with a smug grin.
“Bitch.”
Despite the mere couple of days they’d be on this job together, Sam still got the itching feeling this was going to be a long, long ride.